Hounds Undone
by BigRedMachineUK
Summary: Seth Rollins is an agent in the secret organisation The Authority and one of the world's deadliest assassins. When he crosses paths with a mysterious woman during an assignment, he makes a life-changing decision that switches his role from the hunter to the hunted. An AU espionage fic. Seth/OC, Shield, Cody Rhodes, Triple H etc.
1. Mission Accomplished

_**A/N: Actually wrote this fic in another fandom, then brought it over here to see how it fares. And yes, before you ask, it's all mine. I spent hours upon hours awake on research and late night updates. I do hope you get to read and enjoy it, and hopefully review! The first set of feedback is essential because it encourages us writers to keep going. So if you like (or not), kindly let me know. Much appreciated. :)**_

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No one ever came this part of town. You wouldn't dare, not if you wanted to leave with your possessions and your body parts intact.

This part of San Juan had such a terrible reputation that it was simply referred to as The Other Side of the Tracks. The abnormally high crime rate, the blatant lack of respect for authority by all who lived there was enough to keep one's distance. The authorities and the government had long since abandoned any attempts at salvaging what was left of the streets' dignity.

There was a party happening inside the infamous warehouse on the other side of the tracks, a party that was in full swing. But this was no birthday cake, hat and streamers party. This was a typical sex, drugs and rock and roll event, and it was strictly by invitation. From the outside, the warehouse looked decent enough for worthwhile use, but the inside was another story, telling a dire tale of guns, drugs, prostitution and all-round illegality. No person of any self-respect showed their face in here. All activities taking place in this run-down warehouse were organized by the sleaziest group of vagabonds in the city. Tonight they converged, spent from a week of hard work and intent on enjoying a weekend of excess and debauchery.

At the topmost floor, loud reggaeton music blared from the stolen speakers set up beside the door. Half-naked girls sauntered around tending to the horny males. Two men oversaw the happenings in this place.

"There's nobody in this fucking town that's better than us right now," one of them boasted loudly over the music. "We run this town!" He went by the name of Primo, a direct product of The Other Side of the Tracks. He was brash and arrogant, calculating and ruthless. For some reason, those qualities took him far as he was one of the most feared and formidable gangsters in the area.

His best friend and partner in crime, a drug runner called Epico, agreed. "The best guys, the best bitches, the best guns and all this cash," he listed, tossing currency notes carelessly into the air. "What more could you ask for?"

Epico's girlfriend Rosa, Primo's cousin and a hard-nosed weapon-wielding prostitute, proceeded to yank his face towards hers and engage him in an erotic lip lock. He spread her across the couch and mounted her, his lips still attacking hers as she wrapped her legs around his waist. Primo eyed them enviously. "Man, I really need me one of those." He sat down and beckoned at a girl, who obediently scurried over to him and took a seat on his lap.

Some old geezer they picked up the night before slouched in an armchair, drunk as a skunk and high as a kite. He was from out of town, from Glasgow, Scotland or somewhere like that, and had spent the past few days waxing lyrical, trying to convince Primo and Epico that he was as badass as they were. Contrary to stereotype, his tolerance for alcohol was extremely low, as having had just three drinks he was already stoned out of his mind. He raised his bottle in the air in a drunken toast. "You Puerto Rican guys are the best, man," he slurred, pointing at Primo. His name was Rodney or something. They hadn't bothered to find out. "I could drink this shit forever. It tastes really good, really different."

Of course it did. They had the drink laced with sleeping pills. The gangsters planned to butcher him up alive and sell his heart, kidney and other vital organs to a black market to make themselves some more money. Not that they were going to tell him that...

As Primo conversed with one of his men, something floated down from above, coming to rest by his feet. It was a white envelope. He picked it up and looked at it. There was no address, it felt empty, and there was a wax seal that fastened the envelope closed at the back.

"What'cha got there?" the old man asked. He stumbled his way over, glancing lazily at the envelope. Suddenly he squealed like a pig, dashing away from the thing as if it were a communicable disease.

Primo glared at him. "Hey, what's up your ass, man?" he said, annoyed. Epico pushed Rosa off of him and looked their way.

The old man cowered in a corner, staring at them with frightened, beady eyes. The sobriety evidently had been slapped back into him. Beads of sweat formed on his upper lip. "You opened it!" he cried incredulously, looking wildly back and forth between the two gangsters. "You should never have touched it!"

"What? There's nothing inside!" Primo said, waving the envelope in the old man's direction. Epico took it out of his boss's hands and inspected it. "It's empty, you pussy!"

The old man flinched and edged away from any possible contact with the stationery. "You fool! The flying demons are here!" he whispered. He glanced fearfully towards the ceiling, looking like he was about to piss his pants. "Oh Jesus, oh God, we're dead. We're all dead!"

"_Hijo de puta_!" Rosa hissed, inspecting the envelope. "I was hoping to find some angel dust or coke in this piece of shit." Irritably she lobbed it over her shoulder and went back to fondling her boyfriend.

"You messin' with us, old man?" Epico demanded, narrowing his eyes with suspicion. He was certain they had only put sleeping pills in his drink, nothing stronger.

"I thought it was a fuckin' joke too," the old man insisted, glaring at them. "But they're real! Real, I tell ya! I saw them once before back in New Orleans, and I barely made it out alive." His eyes were alight now, haunted in reminiscence. "They strike like thieves in the night, destroying everything in sight." He pointed a trembling finger at the envelope. "Once the seal is broken, there is no escaping the flying demons. We cannot cheat death," he warned them, "We will die tonight, every single one of us in this room!"

Epico stared hard at the man, his head cocked to the side as he contemplated him. Then he burst into laughter, as did Rosa and the rest of the other marionettes. "If that ain't the biggest pile of bullshit I ever heard!" he guffawed. He turned to his cronies and jerked his thumb over his shoulder at the Scotsman.

"Can you believe this guy?" he said, laughing his head off. They all joined in, a few of them even going as far as rolling around on the ground.

Suddenly Epico's laughter stopped, so abruptly that they all paused to look at him. The mirth that had filled his features was now replaced by dazed surprise. A hole had appeared smack between his eyes as if by magic. Then the hole started to pour blood. No sound came out of his mouth again. The young gangster keeled over backwards and collapsed like a log of wood to the floor.

"_Fuck_!" Primo shrieked, gawking at his friend's lifeless body.

Rosa screamed. The other women standing around screamed. Some of them tried to scamper out of the room in a fruitless attempt to escape disaster. In a state of panic, the men's guns materialized by their sides, their heads darting around the room, searching for the invisible killer. The Scotsman was beside himself. He whimpered in his little corner of the room, more than aware that the end was near.

There was a whizzing sound, and then a snap. Primo turned around. Rosa was standing with a gun in her hand, but she could not use it. A knife was embedded in her chest, right inside her heart. She stared blankly at Primo before falling forwards to the ground, the impact driving the knife even further into her body.

What little composure that was left in Primo disintegrated. Seizing his dead's friend sub-machine gun, he opened fire, screeching like a banshee and spinning around in the same spot wildly. Not one bit of the ceiling was spared. His henchmen followed suit. They did not stop shooting until all of their bullets ran out. They stared up at the ceiling, waiting, expecting to see a bullet-riddled corpse fall from the sky. The faceless bastard was dead. He had to be.

The next few seconds happened like a blur. Bullets rained down from above like hailstones, hissing like venomous snakes, ripping cleanly into every intended target. Flying daggers decapitated heads from shoulders like hot knife through butter. One by one they dropped like flies until there was no one left alive. The only survivors were Primo and the elderly Scotsman, who was sobbing hysterically as his profligate life flashed before his eyes. Primo's gun clattered to the floor. He fell to his knees and raised his head heavenwards.

"What the _fuck_ do you want from me?!" he yelled into the air, saturated with the stench of blood and bullet residue and brain matter. "Get away from me! I ain't done nothin' to you! Leave me alone!"

Abruptly he stopped talking, and a look of surprise, similar to the one Epico had before he died, appeared on his face. His eyes glazed over, and then he plummeted face-first to the ground. A knife stuck out of the back of his head.

The Scotsman looked frantically around, panic welling up inside his inebriated system as he took in the destruction before him. Then all of a sudden, like a wisp of smoke, his name filtered through the air.

_Mister Piper…_

The old man sucked in a terrified breath. They remembered him. He knew he should have fled the country when he had the chance.

_Mister Piiiiiper…_

_Mister Piperrrr…_

He started to cry. "Wait! Wait!" he shouted, making a lame attempt at diplomacy, taking great effort not to make eye contact with the grisly carnage again for fear he would throw up, but the alcohol in his system was not helping matters. "Please, please don't kill me! I'm begging ya."

His pleas were met with cold, deathly silence. Then, from the corner of the room, a heavy combat boot stepped out of the shadows, followed by the other. A tall, hooded, intimidating figure emerged, and Piper's eyes bulged, paralyzed by terror. It was just like that night in New Orleans all over again. Piper trembled violently. He had escaped before, but this time he knew his luck had run out. Nemesis had truly caught up with him.

The hooded man slowly approached him and crouched down in front of him. Piper still could not see his face. The drugs in his drink were now starting to work. But still, he knew he couldn't run if he was a hundred times sober.

"Please don't kill me," he begged, his words slurring and his eyes starting to give up on him. "I'll be a better person from now on, I swear! I'll start paying my taxes! Hell, I'll even start attending church again. I'll-"

Without warning, his eyes drifted closed and his head lolled to the side, the sleeping pills finally knocking him out. The hooded man regarded him for a moment or two, then stood upright and walked out of the warehouse. As he exited, he lit a match and dropped it. It caught a thin line of fuel, rapidly retracing its origin. Emerging into the cool night air, the hooded man mounted his motorcycle. The warehouse exploded, forming a huge mushroom cloud behind him. Glass and debris flew everywhere, but he did not flinch. He rode off down the road, disappearing into the night.

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_**A/N: I know I'm being ambitious, publishing two stories at a time, but we'll see how it goes. I'm really excited about both. I hope you let me know what you think. Thanks!**_


	2. The Authority

_**Chapter 2. Enjoy!**_

* * *

Seth Rollins walked briskly down the bustling street, munching on an apple. In approximately three minutes' time, he would be late. He stepped into the office building and headed into the nearest empty elevator. He pressed the '-1' button, taking him to the basement floor. He then pressed the 'Emergency Stop' button twice, making the elevator come to an abrupt halt. Seth then pressed the '-1' button again. A small black slab slowly slid out in front of him. Seth placed his hand on the top of the slab, and a blue horizontal line ran underneath his hand, scanning his palm. A few seconds passed, and a faint whirring sound could be heard. Then a woman's voice spoke.

_"Handprint identification verified as Seth Andrew Rollins. Please proceed."_

The elevator went one floor lower to a place that did not exist to the outside world. Behind that door stood the Headquarters of The Authority, the covert operations organization Seth had been with number of years now. The people working here were the human embodiment of ghosts; no one saw them, no one heard them. But their actions greatly influenced the political and economic landscapes of many a society.

Assassin. Contract killer. Professional hit man. Spy. Whatever you chose to call it, Seth Rollins was it. He was hired to dispatch people and retrieve information, and got paid handsomely for it. There were no questions asked and no answers given, and that was the way The Authority preferred it.

As the door slid open, Seth checked the silver Hublot adorning his left wrist. Right on time.

He walked through the main offices before turning left into another section of the building. He had barely taken a couple of steps when he heard a deep voice say behind him; "The world is coming to an end. You're early today."

Seth rolled his eyes, turning to exchange a man-hug with his colleague. "Funny, Roman," he griped, not surprised at all that he hadn't heard the big man coming. No one saw Roman Reigns coming until it was too late. For someone built like a truck, his ability to stay silent was frightening. He practically wrote the textbook on stealth work, and his extensive knowledge of guns and skills as a sniper were second to none. A man of few words, he let even fewer moves go to waste. Seth found him slightly intimidating, even to this day. He would never admit it, but Roman probably already knew. He also had a knack for reading people, which never failed to work in his favor.

He looked past Roman's broad shoulders and nodded his head towards the man with unruly dirty-blond hair. "Ambrose."

Dean Ambrose returned the nod and fist-bumped Seth. Now Dean was an interesting character. For a less politically correct word, the guy was a borderline psychopath. That didn't stop him from being arguably the best tripwire technician walking the planet, his personality as explosive and impulsive as the equipment he loved so dearly. According to him there was "something relaxing about watching shit blow up". Looking at the two men, Seth woke up every morning thankful that they were on the same team.

"Took you long enough to get here, Rollins."

And then there was Cody Rhodes, the young man who seemed to have made his life's goal to be a constant thorn in Seth's side. Young, brash and ambitious, Cody had climbed up The Authority's ranks pretty quickly and was one of the company's top operatives. For some reason, he and Rollins never saw eye to eye, and while Seth didn't quite understand why, he didn't really care. That didn't mean he couldn't poke the hornet;s nest every once in a while, just for kicks.

"Mornin' to you too, ball of sunshine," he greeted sarcastically, fueled by Dean and Roman's sniggers behind him. "Why the _long _face?"

Aware he was being mocked, Cody's handsome features twisted into a snarl. Dean waved his hand dismissively. "Ignore Rhodes. He's just pissed he didn't get the San Juan gig."

Roman burst out laughing, casting a shocked glance in Dean's direction. Seth merely shrugged, used to his colleague's lack of filter. Besides, Dean had only said out loud what everyone else had been thinking. He knew Cody had lobbied for that job, but for some reason it was passed on to Seth. He could have passed on the job, but he took it anyway, just to spite Cody, like he always did whenever he received the more lucrative assignments. Tit for tat, if you will.

Cody's face turned red. "I'll see you three at target practice, and you better not be late." With that, he trudged away.

Seth watched him go, shaking his head. The young agent was excellent at what he did but he could be such a hard-ass. Seth did not understand why the guy was so ultra-competitive about everything, or why he took his job way more seriously than necessary. His attitude often made him difficult to work with, but he wasn't anything the other agents couldn't handle.

One of The Authority's internal operatives, Aksana, was giving a lecture to trainees inside one of the large rooms. Seth, Roman and Dean, along with Cody, stood in front of the two-way mirror to listen in. Roman pointed at the recruits. "Remember when that used to be us?" he whispered to Seth, earning a nostalgic smile from the smaller man.

"What I'm about to show you all is a compilation of material assigned to four of the best agents this organization has ever produced," Aksana addressed the trainees. "They are senior operatives, highly trained and highly skilled in every discipline available. Observe closely the distinguishing traits in each assignment in order to understand and appreciate the complexity of the job as a whole. As this is highly confidential material, what you see will be shown to you only once, so pay close attention."

She turned on the projector and sidled to the corner of the room.

"Exhibit A."

_A silver SLK McLaren-Mercedes sped down the open desert road, the lone sign of modern civilization for miles. A motorcycle swept into view, moving twice as fast as the sports car. The rider was decked from head to toe in black attire. He crouched low in his bike, streamlining his body with his vehicle, like a cat waiting to pounce. He quickly closed the gap on the Mercedes. Then, with the dexterity of a motocross racer he drove the bike upwards and it flew over the Mercedes. As the biker sailed upside down over the car, he slapped two circular objects onto the roof of the vehicle. The bike landed perfectly ahead of the Mercedes and sped off like lightning. The car exploded in a ball of fire._

"So fuckin' cool," said Dean. The grin on his face was an unmistakable acknowledgment of his awesomeness.

"Exhibit B."

_Three men inside a basement were playing cards when a fourth stumbled into the room. He was a dorky-looking guy with huge geeky glasses, lanky blond hair and a matching handlebar moustache. He clutched a bottle of beer and looked plastered. The men in the room had gotten to their feet, guns withdrawn, but they put them away when they determined he was harmless. "Are ya lost, fella?" one of them, pasty-white and ginger-haired, asked, eyeing the newcomer suspiciously._

_The stranger put up his hand. "Sorry, he slurred in a thick Southern accent, "I'm lookin' for someone; a guy named Finlay."_

_Two of the men glanced at each other. "Who wants to know?"_

_The blond drunk put up his hand. "I heard through the grapevine that he's lookin' for a coupla new hands. Now I know y'all are Irish and don't tend to stray from your species-" he said, oblivious to the deathly glares that were shot his way, "-but unless you allergic to Alabaman folk, I'd like a job."_

_They shook their heads. "You're gonna have to wait till he gets back."_

_"I can do that."_

_"Not the best-lookin' fella, are ya? What exactly can ya do?" the second Irishman, taunted. The stranger merely shrugged. "Don't let the look fool ya, pardner. You'll be surprised what lil' ole me can do when need be." He pointed at the table. "So uh, mind if I join your little game while I wait?"_

_The men looked skeptical. They didn't want anyone ruining their poker game._

_"Come on," the stranger coaxed, drawing out a fat wad of dollar bills from inside his jacket pocket, "it'll be fun."_

_The men's eyes lit up greedily, and one kicked a seat towards him. An hour later, the stranger was drunk and losing a lot of money. Midway through the third game a stocky white-haired man barged into the room. The poker players froze, looking like deer caught in the headlights. The white-haired man pointed, his eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Who's this?"_

_"Said he's lookin' for a job," the first man said quickly, eager to exonerate himself._

_The stranger looked up and pointed with his beer bottle. "Finlay, I presume?"_

_"Yeah. No vacancies lad, sorry," said the white-haired man._

_The stranger from Alabama pouted, and taking one last sip of his beer he said, "Oh, that's okay. I already got a job."_

_Then his smile faded. Like lightning his hands went in and out of his jacket. He shot the man at the door, killing him. The others had let down their guard. None of them stood a chance. He hit each man cleanly in their hearts. It was over in seconds. Pulling off his wig, the stranger casually stepped over the bodies and exited the room, but not before sneaking his money - and theirs - into his pocket._

Dean noticed the smug smile on Cody's face and rolled his eyes. Seth meanwhile had to admit it was flawless work by the young agent.

"Exhibit C."

_The news channel CNN came on, and their cameras focused on the controversial Taiwanese steel magnate as he stepped out of his limo, heading into the Chrysler Building in New York City for the Annual Steel Manufacturers Summit. Outside was jam-packed with paparazzi, newsmen and protesters, and the man was surrounded by bodyguards. But he had barely taken two steps out when he collapsed to the ground. The camera was knocked out of focus for a second, the air punctuated with panicked screams. CNN came back on and showed the bodyguards as they tried to save their charge, but the bullet hole in the middle of his forehead told them it was too late._

It was Roman's turn to smile as Seth gave him a complimentary pat on the shoulder.

"And finally, Exhibit D."

It was Seth's most recent job in San Juan. Bullets flew, knives sliced, bodies were decimated left and right. It was so fast that the video had to be slowed down a few notches. With the footage now considerably slower, one could spot an armed and extremely dangerous Seth Rollins creeping into the room through the topmost window after ensuring the thugs had wasted their bullets.

Seth crossed his arms as he watched himself slice through the poor saps like a hot knife through butter. "So we're 'exhibits' now?" he asked with a grin.

Dean shook his head. "Naw man, not just exhibits," he said, his accented voice filled with pride, "we're fucking legends."

* * *

Seth entered his apartment, thoroughly worn out. Spending the entire day training new recruits had to be without a doubt the most boring thing ever. Next time he would leave it to Mathews and Renee. They enjoyed that shit. Seth found the front lines much more entertaining.

He made himself dinner, vegetable stir-fry and boiled potatoes. Midway through his meal, his Mac Book made a sound. He went over to his work desk and clicked on it. The image of Hunter Helmsley, the man at the helm of The Authority, appeared on the screen, and Seth immediately knew a new assignment was on offer.

"Good evening, Mr. Rollins," Hunter addressed him, looking prim and proper as always in his thousand-dollar Tom Ford suit. Seth and the other agents had a couple of outfits just like that. Their pay grade afforded such niceties.

"The head honcho himself," said Seth, taking a seat in front of his laptop. "Whatcha got for me?"

"Nothing you can't handle, I expect. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, involves the elimination of the listed target."

The target's profile details blinked back at Seth like a neon sign.

_Name: Michael Mizanin_

_Aliases: The Miz_

_Bounty: $15,000_

_Location: Miz Towers, Hollywood, California._

"You can choose to either operate on your own or select an operative to accompany you. You have seventy-two hours to complete this assignment and report back to base. Make it clean." And with that, he logged off.

Seth waited for the options to appear before clicking on Accept. The data processed before Seth's Mac Book shut itself off. California was a several-hour flight. Seth hadn't been to the West Coast in a while. Three days was more than enough time to carry out his assignment. Maybe he could do some gadget shopping afterwards in Silicon Valley.

_Looks like I got some packing to do._

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_**A/N: Anyone feeling this so far? Kindly let me know. :) Also, I got another story out called 'Into The Deep End'. Please review. Thanks!**_


	3. His Calling

_**A/N: Thanks to **__nikki1335__** and **__CheekyClaudine__** for the feedback. Very much appreciated. Thanks to all the follows and favorites as well. I would love some more. :)**_

_**Enjoy chapter 3!**_

* * *

_Forty-nine hours later..._

A big part of carrying out every assignment included conducting an extensive recon on their targets. Seth was no different. What he found this time was quite the fairy tale.

Born and raised in Ohio, Mike Mizanin lived in poverty in the working class environment of Cleveland. Leaving his hometown at the age of eighteen, he found work as an intern in a very small record company in California. He worked his way up, gathered enough money to buy out the flailing company and made it into a respectable business. Within five years it was booming, thanks in no small part to the artists he signed to the label. He produced hit after hit, racking up millions in record sales. He then went on to produce the most watched reality show in American TV history and became a billionaire within three years of the launch of the show. A decade later, he had a net worth of two billion dollars and the world at his feet. He had everything going for him.

Too bad it was all going to come to a screeching halt tonight.

Closing from work at late hours was a habit for Mr. Mizanin. Sometimes he would stay over in his office working till the next morning. But in recent times the music mogul had acquired a new habit - playing away from home. Mike, a serial womanizer, was currently cheating on his wife of three and a half years, and she found out. Feeling betrayed by his blatant disregard for their relationship, she decided to take matters into her hands and secretly enlisted the services of The Authority. Well, that was what the agents were paid so handsomely for after all. It was their job to get their hands dirty on their clients' behalf.

Seth had thought about getting Dean's explosives for the hit on Mizanin, blow up the whole damn building and leave no trace of evidence. But he figured it would be too much work and too much noise, given the fact that the building was thirty stories high. And unlike Ambrose he very much enjoyed the use of his hearing. Roman would have done an up-close-and-personal – abducting the target and taking his time to finish him off – but Seth didn't think that was necessary, and he would rather eat his shoes than ask Rhodes for any suggestions. He would never hear the end of it.

Decked in all-black and using a beanie to cover his hair, Seth climbed up to the roof of the train. His boots had special soles that would keep his footing should any sudden movement occur. Adjusting his night vision goggles, he waited, biding his time to strike. Seth chose to use a high-tech long-range rifle with a silencer. It was simple, less dramatic and very, very effective; just how he liked it.

The famous Miz Towers building soon came into view. Mike's office was at the very top, Seth had learned, and he was still inside. The Authority operative fiddled with the dials on his goggles again and zoomed in on his target.

Mike sat behind his huge oak desk, leaning back in his chair as he spoke on his cell phone to his girlfriend. His face seemed flushed for some reason, and he kept shifting in his chair. Seth could hear every word of the conversation. He couldn't hold back a snort when he heard the woman that hired him say she loved her boyfriend. As soon as Mike soon hung up a petite, dark-skinned woman emerged from underneath his desk and kissed him passionately. Seth instantly recognized the woman as one of the judges on Mizanin's latest TV show. Many a rumor had circulated that they were sleeping together, but both parties had shot down the gossip, claiming they were just friends and co-workers.

Right, co-workers who groped each other like lovesick teenagers, Seth thought, rolling his eyes as Mike's hands reached around to grip her ass. Knowing it wasn't his place to judge, he cast that sentiment aside. By the time Mizanin found out the true meaning of 'women were nothing but trouble', however, it would be too late.

Finally untangling herself from Mizanin, the woman blew him a kiss and left the office. Seth watched Mike's smile falter as he noticed the empty white envelope sitting at the top of a small pile of mail on his desk for the first time. Seth had got an insider at Miz Towers to deliver it to Mizanin's office earlier that evening. The businessman looked puzzled as he examined the strange-looking emblem sealing the envelope before peeling it off. That was his cue.

Seth cocked his rifle as the train began to veer out of Miz Towers' line of sight. Then, with his target locked, Seth fired the shot, and watched as the bullet curved brilliantly, smashing through the glass window and lodging itself into Mizanin's forehead. The man's body instantly jerked back before slumping forwards, his head banging onto his desk. He did not move again.

Seth climbed back into one of the train's cabins and sat down. Then, after taking a few moments to catch his breath, he turned to the man beside him reading a newspaper and casually asked:

"Can I read that when you're done?"

* * *

Roman gave Seth a call minutes after he got into his hotel room. It was habitual for them to check on each other after they went on assignments, if anything to just confirm that the other had survived through the task. Not that they expected anything less than a routine success. "How did it go?" asked Roman.

Seth unclipped his utility belt with his free hand and tossed it onto the sofa. "Without a hitch. Poor guy didn't know what hit him."

"Brilliant. This time tomorrow the whole damn world will be shitting themselves after they watch the morning news."

"Well, that's the plan," said Seth, sticking his phone between his hunched shoulder and his ear to pull off his shoes. "Look, I'm a little tired. We'll talk tomorrow, all right?"

"All right. I'll let you get some rest. Nice one, Rollins." And the line disconnected.

Seth cleaned his guns before taking a shower. After that he fixed himself a strong drink. He turned on the TV and ironically, there sat Mizanin verbally assaulting an aspiring female singer who looked on the verge of tears. Unfortunately – or maybe not – no one was going to see that image again.

He made his way to his balcony with his drink, leaned against the railing and listened to the omnipresent sounds of the busy Los Angeles night life. Contrary to what people might think, the likes of Seth slept excellently after an assignment. Taking a life had never once been uncomfortable for him, especially when the 'victim' deserved it. You couldn't be in this profession if you were too emotional. It could never work. Besides, he thought wryly, taking a sip of his Scotch, everyone had to die _sometime_.

His very first victims were his mother and her deadbeat boyfriend. Seth's father had died in a car accident a few weeks before he turned fifteen. His mother took advantage of the tragedy, squandering her husband's money and getting into bed with anything that breathed. She stood by as her asshole of a boyfriend beat on her own son day in, day out for nearly a year. Then one fateful night, Seth's mother let slip that it was _she_who orchestrated his father's death. Seth gripped his glass of Scotch tightly as he remembered how she had laughed in his face when he confronted her. She revealed that her boyfriend was the one who had tampered with the brakes of his father's prized Corvette. His bitch of a mother was actually _happy_ with what she'd done. Both of them actually bragged about it, gloated openly over their actions. A devastated Seth, already an emotional wreck over the loss of his beloved father, finally - inevitably - snapped. Seizing a kitchen knife, he slashed his mother's throat before going after his stepfather. He would never forget the fear that filled the coward's eyes, the way he squealed like a little girl right before Seth cut his heart out with the knife. Seth could not remember doing anything with such conviction before. It was the most exhilarating experience ever. His actions were more than justified. They'd taken his beloved father away from him and destroyed his innocence, his childhood. They did not deserve to live. That night, he set the house ablaze and walked away a changed young man, a free young man. As far as he was concerned, Seth had no family, no friends, no emotions.

Seth Rollins' first venture into the business of professional killing occurred one fateful night when he walked back to the shoddy space he was living in and stumbled into what looked like an ongoing robbery. He'd attempted sneaking past the affected house and prayed he wouldn't get caught, but he had no such luck. He was confronted by the man he would come to know as Cody Rhodes, who promptly attacked him in an effort to silence him forever. Seth had fought hard for his life, but ended up getting his ass kicked. Then, just as Cody was about to deliver the fatal blow, Roman and Dean intervened. Having watched Cody and Seth's battle from their vantage points, they had to say that they were very impressed by what they had witnessed. This young man had held his own against one of the most proficient killers in the world, displaying grit, power and technique that were only seen in a potential Authority operative. Roman invited Seth to return to Headquarters with them. Having very little left to lose - blood included - he agreed. Training was brutal - Seth had never gone through such hardship or felt so much pain in his life - but this was all he had left. He stood firm, learning the tricks of the trade, developing his skills and as much else as possible. After a grueling nine months, Seth was officially recruited to The Authority. It was the best decision he had ever made. He loved the process that went into planning his hits, the rush that came with it, and he was getting good money for it. It afforded him the snazzy apartment he lived in and gained access to a lavish standard of living.

One would think that a man with Seth's "lifestyle" would have a busy time with the ladies. He did, to an extent. His sex life did not suffer because of his work, not at all, but he never went into any serious relationships. The women he let into his life, no matter how short the timeframe they were allowed, always ended up being a bit too inquisitive for his liking. Did they really need to know why everything in his home needed codes to function? Why not just get in, get off and get out? They did not need to see the row of Winchester rifles he had stashed neatly into the wall behind his refrigerator, or the neat little drawer set in his closet that contained his shiny new, state-of-the-art switchblades. His work meant everything to him. No drab nine-to-five job or any cheap piece of ass could ever give him that constant elating sensation that he needed, that he craved. He would choose his job ten times over simply because he belonged in this covert, dangerous world. This was his calling.

This was his destiny.


	4. The Code

_**A/N: More feedback, yay! Big thanks to **__nikki1335__** and **__Alexis Black-Reigns__** for the reviews. Keep 'em coming! Enjoy chapter 4!**_

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"Fuck!" Seth gritted his teeth as his body slid down the jagged, unforgiving surface of the rock. He gingerly touched the part of his face where he scraped his cheek.

"Jesus, asshole!" Dean yelled, hanging on a few feet above Seth. "I thought I told you to tighten that rope earlier! You nearly fuckin' dragged me down with you!"

This was a typical day off for the agents. The average person went sightseeing, lounged in a beach somewhere or just hung out with friends at home. These guys went hiking in the Amazon jungle, engaged in every extreme sport imaginable, and co-habited with Shaolin monks. Each of these things strengthened the muscles in the body, heightened awareness and all-in-all converted their bodies into the assault weapons they were today. Today they were rock climbing in Utah.

"We should go out sometime," Dean suggested, wincing as he heaved himself up a jagged slab of rock. "All this excessive physicality is messin' with our minds."

Dean was right, partially. It had been a long week for both of them. In this line of work, days tended to blend into the other, disorienting the mind. In some cases people began to lose the stomach for some of the brutal things they did. That was when the mistakes were made. You could never tell who may be lurking around when that happened, be it an undercover cop or a Federal Agent or a rival hit man. The possibilities were real and the consequences were always deadly.

At The Authority, a strict code of honor was followed, which consisted of three simple rules: the first was to never spill the blood of an innocent. Walk in, take out the target and anyone else who gets in the way, and walk out. The second was to always hide in plain sight. Blend in, do nothing that would garner unnecessary attention. The third and probably the most important was to never compromise the company. Nothing, human or otherwise, was to come between an agent and these three rules. Breaking the rules was inexcusable and punishable by death. Second chances were a very costly luxury in this business.

But still, many fell short. The temptation was too much for most. Some chose to betray loved ones in the face of danger. Others turned their backs on The Authority for financial gain. But the one thing they had in common was that they rarely lived to tell the tale. A fellow agent was entrusted with the job to eliminate the offender, and said person was expected to operate as if it were just another assignment. Emotion, they came to learn, was a sign of weakness. Weakness, as demonstrated so many times, only served to compromise the Code. It wasn't too much to ask. After all, The Authority rescued these men and women when everything in life looked bleak for them, handing them a new lease of life. Adhering strictly to the Code was the least they could do.

The two men reached the top of the hill and stared out into the world before them, breathing hard from their laborious yet liberating climb. The sound of Seth's phone ringing caused Dean to roll his eyes. "So much for 'no work on our day off'," he griped.

"You'll get over it," said Seth, taking out his iPhone.

Glenn Jacobs, Director of Operations at The Authority and Hunter's second-in-command, appeared on the screen. "Good morning, Mr. Rollins, Mr. Ambrose. I am aware that this is your day off and I apologize for interrupting. But our clients insist on a speedy delivery of this next mission, should you choose to accept it. It involves the disposal of the listed targets."

The details displayed boldly on the phone screen, along with profile pictures of the targets.

_Names: Titus O'Neil; Darren Young_

_Bounty: $25,000 each_

_Location: The Primetime Lounge, Miami, FL._

"You have seventy-two hours to complete this assignment and report back to base. Make it clean." And Jacobs logged off.

"Miami, so fuckin' jealous," said Dean, watching Seth hit the Accept button. "All that sun, fruity cocktails and half-naked girls at your beck and call."

"You know I don't mess around on duty. And it ain't like you don't got girls strolling in and out of your condo like a fucking conveyor belt," Seth pointed out. "Blech, couldn't he find someone else?" It wasn't that he minded; he'd just hoped to enjoy this one day off.

"Come on, you've done this millions of times. It's nothing you can't handle," Dean assured him. "And you got a place in Miami, right? You get the job done and you can hide out there or whatever until Hunter needs you again."

Which, going on his luck, would probably be five minutes after completing this job. "Yeah." Seth checked his watch and sighed. "We gotta get going. I got approximately twenty-four hours for recon."

* * *

Titus O'Neil was a powerful mob boss from Tampa, Florida. Darren Young was a corrupt lawyer from the same part of town, a longtime associate of O'Neil and a part of his inner circle. The two recently collaborated to rat out a rival gang leader to the FBI in exchange for immunity, but not before beefing up their security thrice over for fear of retaliation.

It would prove to be a waste.

The two men were followed everywhere by their security detail, including the Primetime Lounge, one of the many establishments belonging to O'Neil in that part of town. In such a crowded area like a nightclub, that posed as a bit of a problem. But that was okay. Seth liked a challenge. The first thing they had done was to tweak the surveillance cameras all around the swanky establishment. Anything the security guards at the Primetime Lounge would do to try and rectify the glitch would be futile. And getting into the club itself...well, once again Seth had eyes, ears and helping hands all over this part of the country as well.

Seth walked into the club's VIP section dressed as a Primetime Lounge waiter. The agent made sure to rinse out the blonde dye that usually adorned the right side of his hair to maintain conspicuousness. He had prepared a powerful poison that destroyed the victim's body system exactly six hours after ingestion. A drop was put into a bottle of Darren Young's favorite champagne before it was resealed. No one would ever guess that it had been tampered with, and his rubber gloves would keep any trace of evidence away. Seth set the bucket of champagne on the table and disappeared, certain that Young would polish off the bottle within minutes. Now on to Titus O'Neil. He knew the mob boss had disappeared into the bathroom, along with a bodyguard. Seth walked in, heading straight for the huge man standing guard by the toilet. The bodyguard immediately stood in his way. "Hey, you can't come in here-"

Without warning, Seth dropped, taking the bodyguard down with a powerful leg sweep and knocking him on his ass. The man had barely hit the ground when Seth whipped out his Beretta and shot him cleanly in the forehead. Thanks to the silencer on the gun, no one heard a thing. Seth then dragged his heavy body into a bathroom stall and locked him inside.

"The hell was that?" Titus O'Neil inquired on hearing the small commotion outside. He cautiously opened the door, peeking out of the stall he was in. He spotted the legs of his protector poking out of a stall across from him. Before he could react, Seth's gloved hand slammed his head against the rusty door hinge with such force that it killed him instantly. The agent went on to pour a little water at O'Neil's feet. The first impression would be that he had slipped and fatally hit his head.

Seth left the VIP section, rid of his disguise and dressed in a casual suit, blending in perfectly with the crowd. He pushed through the dancing bodies, his dark eyes browsing the action in front of him. His gaze travelled to the corner of the club and he stopped abruptly, staring openly.

Moving quickly through the party-goers was the most beautiful woman Seth had ever laid his well-travelled eyes on. She was tall, statuesque, with long blond hair and the body of a supermodel. She wore a strapless black mini-dress that was begging to be ripped off of her. She was nearly at the exit when she was stopped by a trio of burly, sour-looking men. They started to pester her, making lewd, suggestive gestures at her. One of them grabbed her by the arm, and at that moment Seth's body moved on its own accord.

"Is there a problem, babe?" he asked when he reached her, his tone calm but menacing as he placed his hand protectively over her waist. She looked confused and apprehensive at first, but Seth held her gaze, silently assuring her that he only had good intentions. It seemed she believed him as she slipped right into the act, leaning into him. "No honey," she answered sweetly, glancing at the men. "These gentlemen here were just saying goodnight."

"Okay. Goodnight, _gentlemen_," Seth practically snarled at them. They were both taller than he was but the cold, murderous glint in his eyes was enough to make them back off. A tense moment passed before the two men backed off, one holding his hands up in mock surrender. Rolling his eyes, Seth took her hand and led her towards the dance floor. "Dance with me."

She stared at him in bewilderment. "What are you doing?" she asked, laughing nervously when he pulled her close.

"They're still looking your way. If we look believable they'll finally go away."

Her eyes widened in surprise, but she kept the smile on her face for the benefit of the prowlers, who scowled balefully at the couple. Seth placed his hands on her hips. He felt her stiffen at first, but she soon relaxed, reaching up to link her fingers around his neck. Even in the dim light, he could still see her face clearly. She had the most amazing eyes, this gorgeous gray hue that he could stare into forever. He breathed in her scent. She smelled as beautiful as she looked. Her full lips just begged to be kissed. And her ass...

"You didn't have to...you know, come over," she said, breaking into his near-erotic train of thought. Her tone took on a self-conscious, almost embarrassed tone as she spoke. "I could handle them."

"I'm sure you could," Seth told her matter-of-factly, "I just did it to boost my already over-inflated ego."

The woman laughed, and it was the most beautiful sound the curly-haired man had ever heard. "I like your honesty," she remarked, returning his grin.

Seth suddenly realized he _had_ been pretty forward. He hadn't even taken into consideration how uncomfortable this might be for her, cavorting with a total stranger. For all he cared she had a boyfriend. But there was something about her that just drew him to her, like a magnet. And the way she held onto him, the way she molded her body against his as they danced drove away every coherent thought from his mind.

"You were right. They're gone now." Her voice cut into his thoughts again. Seth looked up and sure enough, the punks had disappeared. It was time for him to leave. He started to pull away from her. She had the same idea, but when their eyes met one more time Seth felt the hook, line and sinker snatch his willpower away forever. Suddenly everyone around them disappeared, the booming hip-hop music fading away until they were the only two people left in the hot, sweaty expanse of room. Then, in a move that had him both shocked and elated, she stood on her toes and pressed her lips to his.

What little self-control Seth had left in him flew out the window. Wrapping his arms around her back he pulled her flush against him, returning her kiss. He sucked on her bottom lip and she deepened the kiss, sliding her tongue into his mouth, making him moan. His hand was in her hair, and she clutched the front of his shirt, angling her head to kiss him better. Seth nearly melted right there on the dance floor. He'd never tasted anything so good. He wanted this woman badly, very badly.

They abruptly broke apart, breathless as they looked into each other's eyes. Without a word Seth grabbed her hand and led her out of the club and headed back to his apartment. The clothes couldn't come off fast enough and the bed seemed a mile away.

They both moaned out loud when Seth entered her, filling her completely. His body arched over hers as he flexed his hips, thrusting into her, causing her to groan in satisfaction. She wrapped her legs around his waist and moved with him, taking him deeper. He accelerated his pace, hitting every sensitive spot she owned, then slowed it down with an erotic rolling movement with his hips that left both gasping at the new sensations. She dragged her hands along his sides and down to his butt, squeezing it. Seth moved faster, harder, and she had to bite his shoulder to keep from screaming like a mad woman. The feeling of her nails digging into his ass and her teeth in his skin drew a curse out of his mouth. His thrusts became more urgent, more powerful, building their release. She cried out as the orgasm surged through her body. Seth climaxed with a growl escaping his lips before collapsing on top of her. His face rested in the crook of her neck as they fought to catch their breath, both trembling as they slowly regained control of their bodies.

Gathering her into his arms he gave her a breathless kiss on her lips. She put her hand on his chest, her face nuzzling his neck. They stayed that way in each other's embrace until they slipped into deep, satisfied sleep.

* * *

_**A/N: Please review. :) I may not touch this fic again until I upload a new chapter of my other story, Into The Deep End. Check that out too, if you will. :D Thanks!**_


	5. Beautiful Stranger

_**A/N: Thank you to **__Alexis Black-Reigns__** and **__nikki1335__** for reviewing. Very much appreciated!**_

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The alarm clock rang shrilly, but it was only on for a couple seconds before Seth's hand smacked it into silence. His brown eyes fluttered open and met the ceiling. An unfamiliar but pleasant scent drew his gaze down to the blonde beauty snuggled up against his chest. Wow, she was beautiful. Her delicate features were relaxed in slumber, her body rising and falling gently and evenly as she breathed. Normally, he roused the women that spent the night and politely kicked them out of his place, but he felt no need to this time. All of it felt different. Comfortable. His fingers brushed her hair out of her face, wanting nothing more than to stay in bed and cuddle with her, but after the antics of last night, he was starving.

Throwing on a white tank top and a pair of jeans, Seth made his way to the kitchen to prepare breakfast. Most single men were clueless at cooking. Seth could not risk that and decided to teach himself. In his line of work, eating outside was often a dangerous thing to do.

He turned his head in the direction of his bedroom door as it gently swung open half an hour later. She stood a few feet away from him, looking around uncomfortably, back in the sexy short dress from the night before. He recalled almost tearing the garment in two in the heat of their actions last night. Her eyes then fell upon him, and they widened a little as they swept over the man she had spent the night with. The expression on her face was unreadable, and Seth couldn't tell whether appreciation or disapproval accompanied her silent scrutiny.

"Morning," he greeted genially, opting to break the ice before the silence became too awkward. He gestured towards the counter table. "I made breakfast. Would you like to join me? There's toast, cereal or fruit if you want. I got orange juice, apple juice, white bread, brown bread. Take your pick." It was only fair, he thought.

"That's really kind of you," she said, "But I have to go."

"Back to your boyfriend?" Seth was alarmed by the bitter twinge in his voice. And by the stupidity of the question, too. _Jesus, Rollins._ He slapped himself mentally.

Her perfectly carved eyebrows knitted with confusion, but understanding flashed in her eyes a second later, and she shook her head rapidly. "Oh! No, no, no. I don't have a boyfriend..." she trailed off, and Seth could tell she was trying to figure out just why she was explaining herself to a stranger.

"Oh. Well, I don't see the hurry then." He pulled up two chairs at the kitchen island, sitting in one and proceeding to tuck into his breakfast of whole meal bread, lettuce and tomatoes. "Come on," he goaded. "You shouldn't go anywhere on an empty stomach."

She remained standing there for several seconds before walking over to join him. She looked around as she sat down. "You have a nice place, um..."

"Seth."

"Seth." His name had never sounded sexier. "I'm Lily," she replied after a moment's hesitation.

"Lily." Seth smiled. "That's a beautiful name."

She ducked her head as the color crept up her cheeks. "Thank you." She took an apple from the fruit bowl he had passed to her. "I'm sorry," she started, gesturing towards herself. "I don't usually do...you know..._this_."

"What? One night stands?" he filled in for her with a grin, which slackened a little when her frown deepened. "Hey, neither do I, I promise. I usually stay home watching reruns of _Gossip Girl_."

"Ew, no." Lily scrunched her face up and had to bite her lip to keep from laughing as he looked hurt. "What? I love _Gossip Girl_." he said, deadpan. "So let me guess... you watch _Desperate Housewives_." He pretended to think hard when she shook her head, looking mortified by the suggestion. "_Grey's Anatomy_? _True Blood_?"

Lily's lips curled in amusement. "None. I'm into the three CSIs and _Game of Thrones_."

"I knew it!" Seth threw up his hands in triumph.

"No, you did not," the blonde woman pointed out, unable to hold in her laughter any more. As Seth opened the refrigerator Lily seized the opportunity to take a good look at him. Seeing him up close in broad daylight did him a whole lot more justice. He was tall and lean but muscular. He had tanned skin, dark hair that fell past his shoulders, and captivating brown eyes. As much as she wanted to play it down, she had made quite a catch last night. Seth was gorgeous.

But he was still a stranger. A stranger she had slept with; a stranger she had _enjoyed_ sleeping with...

"So, you a Miami native?" Seth began as he poured himself some orange juice.

Lily laughed. "Nope. I'm from Nevada," she replied, slicing the apple into quarters. Seth noticed the deftness with which she handled the table knife. "I'm in town on a business trip."

"Oh?" He was intrigued. "What kind of business?"

"I'm an event planner. I work at a firm in New York."

Seth nodded approvingly. "So do you travel a lot?"

"Oh yeah, usually at our clients' request," replied Lily, "they are very adventurous."

"We all like a bit of adventure, don't we?" He passed her a tall glass of orange juice, which she accepted with thanks. She took a sip, glancing furtively at him. "So what do _you_ do, Seth?" she asked.

"I'm in advertising." Everyone working under The Authority had a "career" apportioned to them, along with legitimate documents as back up. "I also move around a lot thanks to my job." Well, that _was_ true.

"Did you do these?" asked Lily, reaching out to touch one of the various posters that adorned the walls of the apartment, reading some of the captions and slogans aloud.

"Yep. See that one over there, the perfume ad? The clients needed something catchy and that's what my team came up with as the slogan," he explained, telling a story he conjured up a long time ago. "The clients loved it. But a disgruntled employee was caught trying to pass the patent off as his own. The company made sure he never got a job again." Now that was also _kind of_ true. About a year ago Seth, Cody and Roman had been paid a handsome fifty grand each to take out two ex-employees who had stolen their former company's multi-million dollar manifesto and attempted to sell it to the highest bidder.

"What a shame," Lily responded.

"How so?"

"I'm sure he was just looking out for himself and his welfare. I mean, it's a dog eat dog world out there, you know?" she said, "You have to do what you can to survive these days. You either kill or be killed."

Please. What did she know about killing? "Sounds like someone's out to get you," Seth smirked.

Lily started to speak again, but stopped. She looked embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I'm rambling again. You must think I'm weird."

"Not at all. I like listening to you, to be honest," he insisted, which was the truth. He was captivated by her; the way her grey eyes twinkled as she spoke with enthusiasm; her lips, pink and plump; her dainty hands gesturing confidently. He remembered how those hands had caressed him last night and how he had surrendered to their every touch. There was something about Lily that, despite this little chat they were having, was still shrouded in a veil of mystery. Still, it made him want to know her more. No woman he had met ever had this kind of effect on him in such a short period of time.

For a long moment they sat there, at opposite sides of the kitchen island, gazing at each other. Then, Seth lifted his glass of orange juice in a toast. "To dodging bullets," he declared with a wink.

Lily smiled, copying his actions. "To dodging bullets."

They clinked glasses together and drank to it. Her eyes drifted unconsciously to the clock on the wall that she realized she'd been with him for an hour. "Oh gosh!" she gasped, getting to her feet. "I really, really have to go now. But thank you for breakfast, I really appreciate it."

"No problem. Let me walk you out."

"Thanks."

As Seth escorted her to the door Lily ran her fingers over the teeth marks peeking out through the strap of his wife-beater. "I'm sorry about...that. I can't believe I did that. I'm so embarrassed."

Seth was surprised he could concentrate with the way she was touching him. "Don't be. Trust me on that," he breathed, watching her blush again at his words. She was awful cute when she blushed. His heart pounded even harder in his chest when she pressed a soft kiss to the hickey on his shoulder, keeping her eyes on him. That was it for him.

Burying his hands in her blond hair, he dipped his head and kissed her. A surprised gasp escaped her right before he closed in, but her body went limp the moment their mouths met. She moaned softly, sliding her hands up his chest. Seth drew her even closer to him, his large hands caressing the bare skin on her back. Memories of the night before resurfaced and if this went on any further, Seth would give a repeat performance right there on top of the kitchen island.

They finally broke apart, and he gazed at her with an intensity that made her weak in the knees. "Seth..." Lily whispered, breathless from their passionate lip-lock.

"I'd like to see you again, Lily," he told her softly, giving her one last gentle kiss, his beard tickling her face. He took her hand and pressed his lips against her inner wrist, his dark eyes fixed upon her. "Can I see you again?"

The feeling of his mouth on her skin yet again sent a wave of electricity through her body. This was wrong. She wasn't supposed to be here. She wasn't supposed to be doing this...

So why did it _feel_ so right? Why did she feel so comfortable around him when she barely knew him? Why did she melt every time he touched her? And why couldn't she get last night out of her mind? He smiled at her again, a simple but powerful gesture that offered her nights more mind-blowing than the one they had shared together just hours ago, and more. It won her over.

Lily and Seth exchanged phone numbers before she left. He couldn't stop smiling. He felt like the geeky kid that the popular girl had agreed to go to prom with.

His cell phone rang, yanking him unceremoniously out of his happy reverie. He rolled his eyes when he saw it was Dean Ambrose, who apparently had called five times previously.

"Rollins! Where the fuck have you been? I've been calling you all morning!" Dean scolded.

"I was...busy," he offered lamely.

"Yeah, busy getting laid. Turn on the news!"

He did, expecting O'Neil and Young's faces to be reflecting back at him. They did, but along with them was a photo of one of the closest aides of the Mayor of Miami, who was apparently murdered the night before. Seth turned up the TV volume, listening to every word. The cause of death was speculated to be caused by a stab wound to the heart. The Miami Dade PD was investigating a multiple -homicide and had sealed off the _Primetime Lounge_ until further notice...

Shit.

"Seth. There was another player, wasn't there?"

Drawing up a chair to sit close to the TV, Seth kept his phone to his ear. "It seems so, Dean," he answered dully. He swore under his breath. There was no doubt about it. All the signs were there. There'd been another hit man - maybe more than one - at that nightclub last night. Crossing paths with other assassins was not an unusual occurrence for the Authority operatives, it was just that they were always able to sniff rivals out and it baffled him that he hadn't. He highly doubted he would be ID'd on the hit, but it never stopped the agents from looking over their shoulders.

With a tired sigh, Seth exchanged goodbyes with Dean and hung up. He would figure out this shit later. Meanwhile...

His mind traveled back to Lily, and he found himself smiling again. He couldn't wait to see her again.


	6. Down By The Riverside

_**A/N: Shout out to **__nikki1335__** and **__Alexis Black-Reigns__** for the reviews! Enjoy chapter 6!**_

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Dean Ambrose pressed the bell of the front door of the mansion, silently noting the stark contrast the massive house was to the rest of the picturesque Massachusetts countryside. Adjusting his cheap red polo shirt that served as his "work uniform" tonight, he kept his head down, pulling his hat lower so that the surveillance cameras would not get his face. He had a full beard as part of his disguise but one could never be too careful.

He pressed the bell again. A booming voice demanded from the other side on the door. "Who is it?"

"Delivery from Tony's Pizza," Dean replied with his best 'frat boy' voice, "I have an order of two large pepperoni and a medium size chicken and mushroom."

The door was thrown open and there stood an annoyed John Cena. Upstanding, law-abiding citizen and philanthropist by day, ruthless drug kingpin by night. A criminal hiding in plain sight, he used his anti-drug philosophy to conceal his true nature and built his illicit drug empire from the ground up. But of course, the more powerful you were, the more enemies you made, and one of Cena's many detractors had enough resources to hire The Authority to take him out.

Seth watched the proceedings from inside the 'pizza delivery van', his brown irises fixed on the laptop set up in front of him, adjusting his earpiece so that he could hear Ambrose better. Planning this hit took a little longer for Seth. They knew their target had backup and firepower by the bucketload. If they got it wrong there would be a whole lot of trouble for the two Authority operatives. He'd hacked into the residence's surveillance system and disabled all the feeds without a problem. Now the rest was up to Ambrose.

Cena stepped out of the house, followed closely by two henchmen of his. Without as much as a greeting he snatched the pizza boxes out of Dean's hands. "What took you so fucking long?" he griped, opening one box, while one henchman carefully frisked Dean for weapons.

"We were figuring out which gun to blow your head off with," Seth muttered into his earpiece. Dean didn't even flinch at the comment.

Cena handed the pizza to the man standing to his left to taste it. Seth immediately understood what he was doing. _Yeah right_, _asshole,_ he thought, rolling his eyes. The look on Dean's face told him he was thinking the same thing. _Every idiot knows that poisoning open food is such an obvious route_.

"I apologize sir, we're a little short-staffed at the moment," Dean said politely.

"Hey, do I look like I give a fuck about your little sob story?" Cena snapped, pointing at himself.

Dean blinked with surprise, then scratched his beard sheepishly. "Oh, uh...sorry, sir."

Seth worked hard to hold in his laughter. Dean Ambrose's brilliance scared him sometimes.

"You better be sorry," Cena snapped. "Now tell me how much I owe you before I change my mind about paying you."

From behind him, a young woman with jet-black hair sauntered towards them wearing nothing but a large t-shirt and looking higher than a kite in the summer breeze. "Ooh, pizza!" she cooed, swaying a little as she approached. "It's about time, I'm starving..."

"What the fuck?!" Cena jumped, startled. "Nikki! What the...Did I tell you to come down here?" he barked, rounding on her.

The girl's face fell at his outburst. "But baby-" she whined.

"Don't 'baby' me, you dumb bitch! Get your ass back inside, or I'll throw you out of here on your ass!"

Judging from the look of surprise on her face it was obvious she had not yet been introduced to the brash side of her lover. Chastened, she retreated. Rolling his eyes, Cena turned back to Dean. "Well I ain't got all day! How much?"

"49.99, sir."

"Now, Dean," Seth ordered.

As Cena dug into his wallet, Dean drew out two guns he'd hidden in a nearby rosebush and simultaneously put a bullet in each cohort's head. Not a sound was made; the silencer did the trick. Cena froze as he felt the cold steel of the revolver push into his stomach and gaped at Dean with wide eyes. Without hesitation the agent pumped three bullets into him. John Cena dropped to the ground, dead.

Seth started the van and reversed. He kicked open the back door and jumped out to help Dean haul Cena's body into the back of the van. Just as they climbed in, Nikki, the girl in the t-shirt opened the front door again. She saw the two bodies on the floor and then looked right at Seth and Dean. The confusion on her pretty features had been replaced with horrified realization. Her eyes widened, and so did her mouth.

"Oh shit," Dean and Seth muttered in unison.

She let out a blood-curdling scream.

"Go! Go! Go!" Dean yelled as Seth slammed his foot on the accelerator. The van crashed through the gates and sped down the road. Dean climbed into the back of the van to tie up Cena. The plan was to dump the body along with the van into the river so that it would never be found. Seth looked into his rear-view mirror and groaned as he saw Cena's men chasing after them in motorcycles and cars. "Fuck! Hostiles, twelve o'clock!"

Dean as usual remained cool and calm. "Keep driving. I'll handle them." He already had his face mask and bulletproof vest on and was loading his Uzi. Throwing open one of the back doors and using the other as a shield, he opened fire. He burst the tires of the first car and it flipped through the air several times before bursting into flames. Another car, in its attempt to avoid the spinning vehicle, skidded off the road and smashed into a tree. All the while Cena's body rolled lifelessly back and forth beside Dean.

A bullet shattered the right mirror of the van. Seth took another glance at his rear-view and saw that the pizza van was surrounded. A black Mercedes pulled up on the right side of it. Keeping one hand on the wheel, he whipped out his Browning pistol and fired three shots into the Mercedes. The driver got a bullet in the head, and the car swerved erratically off the road and disappeared into a ditch. Gripping the steering wheel, he made a sharp swerve around the bend, and he heard Dean curse at him. He managed to maneuver the van towards the bridge. He was lucky the road was empty. The great John Cena lived in isolation from the rest of the community, so the number of witnesses would be few and far between.

Dean called out for another weapon, and Seth blindly tossed him a semiautomatic shotgun. Through the rearview mirror seconds later, he saw another driver's head get blown to bits. Seth shot the biker to his right in the chest and another guy who had leapt onto the hood of the van. Blood and glass flew everywhere.

"We're above water!" Dean yelled, throwing open the second rear door. "Let's get the fuck out of here!"

Seth kicked open his own door, unbuckling his seatbelt. "On three," he instructed. "One, two..."

They leapt out of the vehicle just in time. The van crashed through the bridge's barricade, sailing through the air and plunging at least twenty feet into the ice-cold water below.

The two men watched in silence as the pizza van sank slowly into the murky darkened water. "So," said Dean after a while, "that was pretty straightforward."

"The broad saw us, Dean," Seth quietly reminded him, his jaw clenched.

Chuckling, Dean began peeling off his fake beard. "You know we couldn't take her out. She wasn't the target."

Seth sighed, realizing that his colleague was right. "Fine, but I'm having her tracked. If I find out that she's going to the cops about this, she has to go. Deal?"

"She won't." Dean's smirk grew wider when Seth shot him a questioning look. "She has problems of her own with the cops. A _lot_of problems."

Seth turned to him in interest. "What do you mean?"

"She's been in hiding for months now," replied Dean, lighting up a cigarette and taking a drag. He offered it to Seth, which he took. "A warrant is out for her arrest for the murder of her twin sister, some famous Burlesque dancer chick from New Orleans. Made a ton of money and shit."

"And you know all of this how?"

"I'm the one who took her out." Dean's expression remained detached as he took another drag. "_Lolita back there_ contracted us, and when it was over she took her sister's estate for herself. Happened about a year ago. Somehow they've been able to link her to the case. At least I now know what she's pissing the money away on."

Seth shook his head, blowing out a ring of smoke. "Damn shame."

Dean merely grunted, giving no further response. They looked out into the lake again, saying nothing for several moments. The van was submerged completely now, laying at the bottom of the river. Mission accomplished. "Come on," said Seth, stepping away from their vantage point. "Let's get outta here."

* * *

The moment Seth got to his hotel room, he gave Lily a call. It was three days since that night and the subsequent morning they spent together and he found himself missing her, wanting to be near her again. He wondered if she was still in Miami. He was delighted to learn that she also lived in Stamford, which was perfect for him. Hopefully he would see her again soon.

She picked up after three rings. "Hello?"

Seth felt his heart warm at the sound of her voice. "Lily. It's me."

"Oh, hi Seth," Lily said. "Sorry, didn't see the caller ID. How are you?"

"I'm good. Still in Miami?"

"Yeah, sadly. Still working, you know?" There was a pause from her end. "I was wondering when you were going to call."

Her voice was soft, almost seductive, causing a smirk to dance across his lips. "And_you_ couldn't call _me_because..."

Lily laughed. "Because I'm an old-fashioned gal. Which means the gentleman always makes the first move."

"If I recall correctly, _you_ made the first move in the nightclub."

He could almost see her smile. "True," she conceded.

"But you are right," said Seth. "A gentleman always makes the first move. So...how's Friday night sound?"

"Sound for what?" asked Lily.

"Our date, silly woman."

"Hmm." Her tone was teasing. "Quite short notice, isn't it?"

"Well, I did tell you I wanted to see you again. You either forgot about what I said or you don't want to see me again. You can tell me. I'll take it like a man." He sniffed loudly and pretended to wipe a tear, while Lily laughed her head off. "You got jokes on you, huh?" she commented. Another pause. "Yes, I do want to see you again. Friday night is fine."

The grin threatened to split his face open. "That's awesome. Pick you up at seven thirty?"

"How about I meet you there?"

"Are you sure?" asked Seth. "I can come get you, it's no big deal."

"Oh no, you don't have to do that. I just have a couple of things to round up for work then I'll be there. Text me the address of the restaurant thirty minutes before you leave. That way I could still be surprised by where you're taking me for our first date."

Seth laughed. He admired how witty she was. She made him feel calm. It was an inexplicable feeling, but one he welcomed immensely. "All right. I'll see you Friday."

"Sure. Goodnight, Seth."

"Goodnight, Lily." Seth hung up and lay back down on his bed, grinning broadly as excitement grew within him. Suddenly the weekend was looking spectacular.

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_**A/N: Please review!**_


	7. The Other Side Of Her

_**A/N: Thank you to **__nikki1335 __**for reviewing the last chapter!**_

* * *

Lily walked into Pearl Garden restaurant and surveyed the room, impressed with the exquisiteness of the establishment. She had to say, Seth had great taste. As she eyed the scenery, her gaze fell on the lone figure sitting in the far corner and she smiled, walking over.

Seth got to his feet as she approached, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "You look amazing," he said sincerely. She wore a dark, long-sleeved playsuit and a pair of stilettos that did amazing things to her already stunning legs. It would take an effort and a half to keep his hands off her.

"Thank you. You don't look so bad yourself." That was an understatement. She loved how well his black polo shirt accentuated his muscled frame. It was going to be quite the task, keeping her hands to herself tonight.

They sat in a secluded corner of the restaurant, sitting next to each other rather than opposite. Lily took a peek at the menu page Seth was looking at. "You're vegetarian?"

"Yeah. Been one all my life," said Seth. In actuality, the decision was forced upon him at sixteen years old. His stepfather, out of nothing but pure spite, murdered Seth's beloved dog Laney, cooked it for supper, and waited for Seth to take a few bites before telling him. The teenager spent hours throwing up in the toilet and in tears. After that day he vowed to never eat an animal again.

"So...I have some news," Lily began. "You are looking at the newly-promoted Head of PR for the Stamford branch of my firm."

As she expected, Seth's brown eyes lit up. "That's great news! Congratulations."

"Oh, but there's more. The firm has decided to keep me permanently here. I'll still be flying around every now and then but only occasionally now." She played with the napkin in front of her. "I just thought I should share it with you."

Seth put his hand over hers. "I'm glad you did. Maybe now we can see each other more often." He looked at her hopefully, and Lily grinned. That was exactly what she wanted to hear. "I'd like that," she replied. They talked about other things, and Seth marveled at how funny and engaging and knowledgeable Lily was. Where had she been all his life?

Dessert was served. Lily flicked a bit of whipped cream in her index finger and held it up to Seth. She watched her finger slowly disappear into his mouth as he sucked the dessert off, watching her intently. The air in the room changed. Shifted. Charged with crackling tension. "Should we get out of here?" she whispered with a sly grin.

Seth hadn't taken his eyes off her. "There's nothing stopping us."

"My place? I'll give you directions."

If she kept talking like that the restaurant was going to have them thrown out for indecent exposure. "I will go wherever you want, sweetheart." His expression mirrored hers, his insides brimming with desire and excitement.

The valet was waiting outside with the keys to Seth's black Maserati Granturismo convertible. Lily ran her fingertips over the smooth glazed hood of the car. "Nice ride," she remarked. "Perks of the job?"

"Something like that," he grinned proudly.

The breeze whipped through Lily's blond hair as she nodded her head to the song on the radio. She looked so carefree, making her even more beautiful in Seth's eyes. He reached over and laced his free fingers in hers, pressing his lips to her knuckles.

They pulled up to her place, and he was stunned. It was a gorgeous two-storey house in an opulent Stamford suburban area, complete with a gate and nicely trimmed hedges. "Perks of the job?" It was Seth's turn to ask.

"Something like that," she chuckled, pushing open the front door.

The inside of her abode looked even better. It was tastefully decorated and homely. "Okay, your place is _so_ much cooler than mine," Seth observed, looking around. "I'm jealous."

"What? Your apartment is a dream. Probably costs more than this whole place too." They both laughed as Lily made her way over to the bar across the room. "So what would you like? Champagne? Jack? Water?"

"I think I'm in the mood for something else," Seth said, his deep voice in her ear. She hadn't even realized when he'd moved nearer. His hands ran up her bare arms, and a shiver danced up her spine when he kissed her neck. If the tension at the restaurant was brimming, it was nothing compared to what was happening right now.

"I've been thinking about you, Lily. A lot," Seth whispered, his chest pressed to her back.

"I've been thinking about you too," she breathed, a sigh escaping her as his mouth made contact with her skin again. His cologne was intoxicating, engulfing her senses. The self-control she'd maintained throughout dinner was fast slipping away.

Placing a kiss on her temple, he gently tilted her face up and brushed her lips softly with his. They kissed that way for a few seconds before Seth spun her around to face him. Her arms entwined around his neck, pulling his body flush against hers as she intensified the kiss. She could feel how much he wanted her, and she wanted him just as badly. Without a word Lily led Seth upstairs and into her bedroom. They staggered blindly towards the bed, their actions becoming more passionate with each step.

An hour later, tangled in each other's arms among the tousled sheets, Lily watched Seth sleep, her hand splayed over his chest to feel his steady heartbeat. Each moment they spent together was bittersweet for her. Each day she wished she could be completely honest with him, but she knew she would probably never be able to.

She didn't exactly have a choice in the matter.

_Twenty hours ago..._

_New York City, New York_

_The woman in the trench coat paid off the driver before climbing out of the cab. He did not notice the generous tip in his hands. He was too busy ogling her. The air outside was clean, crisp and fresh. It smelled like the perfect evening for another flawlessly executed assignment._

_She strolled through the lobby of the lavish hotel, her thigh-high boots clicking against the immaculately polished floor. Her long, tan-colored trench coat swished around her legs, revealing long legs. She noticed the heads of all the men hanging around turning. They could tell she was a hooker, but damn if they didn't want her. Her coat concealed unspoken fantasies beyond any red-blooded man's imagination, and each man wanted a taste. But they were only entitled to one thing tonight; their imaginations._

_She got into the elevator and pressed the number at the top of the board, heading up to the penthouse suite. Two men stood on each side of the only door on that floor. The bodyguards, obviously. They spotted her, and like everyone else downstairs, she got their full attention._

_"Howdy boys? I'm here to see Mr. Layfield," she said in a heavy Southern accent, tossing her dark hair over her shoulder. "He's expecting me."_

_The bodyguard to her left leaned back against the wall and eyed her appreciatively, taking in the dramatic make-up and the teasing trench coat. "Sugar Cane, right?" When she nodded, he crossed his arms. "You're late."_

_So they wanted to toy with her. Men. When would they ever learn? "And I wouldn't like to keep my client waiting any longer. So if y'all don't mind..."_

_Both men guffawed loudly. "Ya better take your time, toots, because after tonight, you ain't never gonna see Mr. Layfield again."_

_I'm counting on it, she thought to herself. Outwardly she maintained her passive stance, waiting patiently till they decided that they were finally bored with their little gag. The left one turned behind him opened the door, letting her in._

_Her "client" turned around, staring her up and down. John Layfield was a Texan businessman with a penchant for trafficking people for the right price. He stood at over six feet tall and was wearing his trademark white ten-gallon hat. The woman produced another sweet, seductive smile for his benefit. "Well howdy, Mr. Layfield."_

_"Hello, sweetheart." He kissed her hand. She noticed that Layfield had prepared for her, and he had gone all out with his expenses. He'd gotten an iced bucket of expensive champagne along with whipped cream and chocolate fondue. He poured two glasses of champagne. All thoughts of his wife and kids back in Texas evaporated from his mind as he envisioned his companion for the night drenched from head to toe in confectionery and cream, and licking it off of her, or even better, she licking it off of him. His mouth watered like a faucet._

_She sat down on the loveseat and he handed her the other glass of champagne, put she put it aside and clicked open the little brief case she brought with her. He watched as she drew out a lasso and a riding crop from her briefcase. An avid fan of S&M, he grinned with excitement. His wife never wanted to do these types of things with him. What a bore._

_He never took his eyes off her as she sauntered over to where he stood. She pushed him down to sit on the bed, standing between his legs. She took off her coat in a rather dramatic fashion, and it slid to the ground, revealing her outfit; a red-and-white checked shirt, tied in a knot just underneath her ample breasts, a teeny, tiny pair of Daisy Dukes and sheer stockings peeking over the knee-length cowboy boots. Layfield was practically salivating._

_She took off her glasses and then pulled out the pin from her brunette tresses, shaking it so it fell around her shoulders and down her back. She put on a pair of gloves, taking her time, as if preparing for a very important surgery. Taking his white ten-gallon hat, she put it on her head, flashing him a sexy wink._

_"I gotta give it to you, baby; you are without a doubt the hottest cowgirl I've ever seen," Layfield remarked._

_"Why, thank you, honeybunch." She gazed at him through her long lashes. "And tonight, I'ma give you the ride of your life."_

_Layfield couldn't wait any longer. Eagerly, his hands circled around her waist, but she smacked his hand away and gestured for him to move further into the bed. He did so in a hurry, stripping down to an ill-fitting pair briefs. He smiled like the cat that had caught the canary. "Ready when you are, darlin'!" he declared. His grin became wider as she advanced towards him on all fours. He reached over to turn off the lights, but she seized his wrist. "Actually, I prefer the lights on," she told him, her voice thick._

_Suddenly she yanked him by the shoulder and toppled him out of the bed. He landed hard on the floor. She climbed out after him, got him onto his knees, and tied his hands up with the lasso. She grabbed a handful of his hair and yanked his head backwards. The entire thing just got him more and more excited. "So you like it rough, huh?" he rasped. She smiled as she looked over his shoulder and caught sight of his erection, upright and stiff as a board. She circled him slowly and deliberately, lightly tracing his skin with the riding crop. "Have you been a bad boy?" she said huskily, tapping the top of his head with the crop. "Answer me!"_

_She then smacked him in the behind with the crop. He winced, and then laughed, this breathy, grating noise that would have been placed with a sex-crazed dog. "Oh, yes!" he answered, "I've been a terrible boy, Sugar! Absolutely vile!"_

_"Correction!" she yelled and smacked him again before getting in his face. "You will address me as Sherriff! See the badge? I run this town tonight, got that?"_

_"Yes! Yes Sherriff!" he yelled, his arousal nearly driving him over the edge. She kept walking around him, making him wait some more. She came to a stop behind him, lightly running the crop up his chest. "I just need to ask you one more question."_

_"Fire away, honey!"_

_She tied the other end of the lasso around his neck. "Have you been trafficking underage Taiwanese girls?"_

_Layfield gasped, thoroughly shocked, looking up at her. Nobody knew about that! "What? Wait! How'd you-"_

_He trailed off, dreadful shivers rushing through his spine as the cold, menacing eyes of an experienced, merciless killer glared back at him. He felt the noose around his neck, and it took him all of a second to realize this woman's real purpose for being here. He started to call for help, but his terrified scream was rudely cut off when her hand clamped down on his mouth, reducing his calls to muffled sounds of desperation. She bent close to his ear, her voice a chilling contrast to the bubbly aggressiveness just moments ago. "You shouldn't have done that,_cowboy_," she whispered._

_Then, she yanked on the lasso violently, breaking his neck._

_She headed for the nearest window and leapt out. She swung out of sight, dropping down to another hotel room balcony below. She slid down the rest of the way and landed safely in a dark alley, completely undetected. Seconds later she emerged onto the lit street. The dark wig had disappeared, and her blond hair floated in the light breeze. Looking up at the hotel, she allowed herself a satisfied smile. _

_She slid into the first taxi cab that came her way. "Where to, miss?" asked the driver._

_Lily pulled off her gloves, looking out the window. "Airport. I'm late for my date." _

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_**A/N: Kindly review! :D**_


	8. FLORA

_**A/N: Special thanks to **__nikki1335__** and **__Alexis Black-Reigns__** for the reviews! To everyone else reading…thank you. Would be nice to hear from you though. :) Enjoy chapter 8!**_

* * *

Lily's event planner profession was, of course, nothing more than a cover. The company she worked for was located on the topmost floor of a tall building in the outskirts of Stamford, Connecticut. The first ten floors of the building were disguised to look abandoned, complete with windowless spaces, large expanses of dust and concrete and inoperative elevators. The only way you could get in was if you worked there yourself.

Under company rules, operatives had to return to headquarters at least twenty-four hours after the completion of an assignment. Failing to comply meant that the agent was deemed to have gone A.W.O.L. After thirty-six hours without reply, a bounty is placed on the agent's head. The chances of survival of said person after that were slim to none. Lily however, had plans to remain alive and in one piece.

Going through the automatic glass doors of the state-of-the-art command center, she stopped briefly to take in a deep, content breath. No place on earth made her feel this in control.

Her colleagues at the Female League Of Revolutionary Assassins were some of the most beautiful, as well as the most bad-ass women from around the world. Like Lily, they had all been subjected to years of rigorous training in various disciplines, including the many forms of combat, weaponry and espionage. But each had their levels of expertise.

Like Lotus, for one. The Asian beauty was one of the older and more experienced assassins of the bunch. Swords, knives, everything involving blades were her proficiency. She learned them all through her childhood from her father, who served as Triad boss for many years. Her knife work was so stellar that she could use them to block bullets.

Then there was Petunia, arguably the deadliest of them all, both on _and_ off-duty. Nobody messed with the Mexican who was known for her hotheadedness as well as her uncanny flexibility. She could climb anything with ease and could squeeze through the most impossible of places. She was responsible for the unsolved mystery of the assassination of the Prime Minister of Malaysia, initially believed to have died in his sleep earlier in the year. Petunia had crept in and out of his fireplace without making a sound.

There were a few other standouts; Lavender from Qatar, Amaryllis from South Africa and the Russian twins Freesia and Fuchsia, who rarely carried out an assignment separately. All of them eclectic; all of them highly trained and highly capable; all of them lethal.

"There she is," a lanky young woman with red hair was the first to greet her. "How's my favorite Brit in the world?"

Lily returned the woman's smile. "Jasmine, my love. How are you doing?"

"Same old, same old. I heard you killed it in New York," Jasmine said, walking with her into the heart of their command center.

"Wasn't I supposed to?" Lily asked innocently. Jasmine slapped her arm playfully. "Lame," she teased. Jasmine was from Australia and the expert on hand-to-hand combat at F.L.O.R.A. Having spent some years in the Australian Army, she was also well-versed in torture tactics and used that knowledge to break victims into giving her what she wanted. Jasmine was one of very few people the Englishwoman could call a friend.

"Well, well, look who's back." A familiar, yet annoying voice grated Lily's ears. To think she'd almost forgotten about that bitch.

Tall and heavily tattooed with long jet-black hair, Violet was the Company's gunsmith. She knew everything there was to know about firearms and loved them with the same passion as her dislike for Lily. "Have fun in New York?" she sneered. Sniggering beside her was Buttercup, a slim African-American woman and F.L.O.R.A.'s locksmith expert. She had a strong dislike for Lily for no reason other than the fact that Violet hated her. Lily frankly didn't give a fuck about either of them. Everyone knew Violet was jealous that Lily was getting the best assignments. In Violet's eyes, Lily was stealing her shine and she had to drag Buttercup in to gang up on her and prove her point.

"New York was splendid," Lily replied coolly. She hated lowering herself to her colleague's level but sometimes she needed to be shut up. "I even managed to throw in some shopping just for you; I bought you a set of top-of-the-range silicone implants."

Jasmine fought to hold in her laughter while Violet's face flushed an angry shade of red. Her chest size was not as ample as most of the other ladies in F.L.O.R.A., something which secretly – or not – irked her. Lily knew she was being petty, but she always got a kick out of riling Violet up.

"You're real funny, huh?" Violet snarled, advancing towards the Englishwoman. "Just fucking hilarious."

Lily planted her hands on her hips. "Yet another thing I'm better than you at, then."

"Violet and Lily at loggerheads again. Looks like a normal day at the office to me."

The entire room fell silent as everyone turned to the gorgeous, exotic woman standing at the top of the short staircase. It was Rose, F.L.O.R.A.'s head, a veteran assassin who was semi-retired from the business. She was a mysterious character. No one knew much about her, but it was rumored that in a previous life, she was a CIA agent who turned rogue and disappeared off the CIA's radar. They've been looking for her since. She was notorious for her no-nonsense attitude and left nothing to compromise.

Rose shot a tight smile towards her two co-workers. "I've told you before," she said, her voice calm and even, "settle your issues in one of the training rooms." Rolling her eyes, she turned to the pretty young brunette sitting in front of the large computer in the middle of the spacious command center. Daisy was the communications expert and the Agents' contact on the jobs, but she also took assignments if needed be. Lily was fond of Daisy, going as far as taking her under her wing and showing her the ropes whenever she could.

"Status of the recent target has been confirmed as deceased," she told Lily with a genial smile, "Your mission was successful."

"Congratulations, Lily," said Rose.

"Thank you." Lily couldn't suppress a grin as Jasmine gave her a congratulatory pat on the back.

"So how's the hot new boyfriend?" Jasmine asked a few hours later when they were alone.

Lily lifted one shoulder in a half-shrug. "He's not my boyfriend, Jazz, not officially anyway. But for now we're as good as we can be."

"Sounds promising," the redhead commented, and Lily shrugged again. "Yeah. I really like him."

An amused smile spread across Jasmine's features at the dreamy look on her colleague's face. "Someone's got it bad."

Lily knew it was no use denying it. She couldn't prevent the goofy smile that often accompanied thoughts of Seth. "He's amazing," she admitted. "We have a great time together. He's so funny and sweet and honest. I almost feel bad, you know?" She waved her hands in a circular motion. "About _this_."

Jasmine looked at her in surprise. "I've _never_ heard you say that."

"Well, that's how I feel." Maybe she shouldn't have said anything.

"You know you can't tell him, especially if it's just a fling," Jasmine advised brusquely. "Has he mentioned the L-word yet?"

"It's been barely a week, Jasmine."

"So?" the redhead retorted with a wry smile. "My ex told me he loved me after three hours."

"Yeah, while you were riding his cock." Lily remembered Jasmine's last boyfriend clearly. A very wealthy man, he had grown suspicious of Jasmine's real identity and had her followed. The Australian swiftly dispatched the Private Investigators before turning on him, confining him to a mental institution in Siberia with the help of Lily, who posed as a Norwegian psychiatrist. "As long as you keep him in the dark, I guess you'll be alright," Jasmine offered. "Just keep the rule in mind. Because you know what happens if you don't."

"Don't worry about it," Lily assured her. "Like you said, maybe this is just a fling."

It ached to say that. She really liked Seth and she didn't want it to be "just a fling" with him. So he'd been to her house. Big deal. He knew that she spoke over five languages. No problem. He didn't know the important parts; that she killed people for a living - a job that made her millions in currencies in the space of a _month_. He didn't know about the weapons she had hidden in designated points of her home, or that she was actually from the United Kingdom and had been perfecting her American accent for years.

There was a lot that Seth Rollins did not know about her. But it had to stay that way if she wanted a future with him. And for the first time in a long time, this was one relationship Lily wanted.

* * *

Seth spent the morning working out at the HQ gym. Ambrose and Reigns had gone on assignments, so he was stuck with watching Cody Rhodes put new recruits through the ropes. There was one idiot in the group that kept making snide remarks while Cody spoke. Cody ignored him, but knowing his colleague, Seth was sure he had something up his sleeve.

"You." Cody finally pointed at the tall, dark-haired young man, then gestured at the boxing ring he was standing in. "C'mere."

Seth chuckled under his breath. There was an air of arrogance about the rookie, topped off by the ridiculous smirk he had on his face. Seth couldn't wait for Cody to eliminate all that nonsense in a big way. Cody eyed the much taller rookie, folding his arms and adopting a relaxed pose as he regarded him with disdain. "What's your name?"

The rookie opened his mouth to respond but Cody struck, driving his knee into the rookie's gut. He dropped to the canvas in pain and Cody pounced, wrapping his legs around the rookie's waist and locking his arms around his head in a sleeper hold.

"You think they're gonna wait for you to introduce yourself before they blow your brains out, dickhead?" he barked, tightening his hold on the trainee, who struggled in his grasp. "Your neck will be snapped before you even blink."

Seth watched stoically from outside the ring as the rookie's flailing movements became weaker. He was clearly about to pass out. The other trainees looked on, terrified. When he'd seen enough, Seth walked over to the ring. "Dude, you're choking him out," he warned Cody quietly. "Let him go."

Cody held on a little longer before releasing the rookie, who choked and spluttered his way out of the ring. "Go get him checked out," Seth instructed the other trainees. They didn't need telling twice. No one dared ignore the great Seth Rollins. Cody watched them leave with a cruel smile and turned to see Seth shaking his head. "Oh, don't give me that look, Rollins. Never heard of tough love before?"

Many theories had been laid out in an attempt to explain Cody Rhodes' sociopathic persona. The recurring one stemmed from a traumatic childhood spent mostly in foster care, where he terrorized all the children he lived with, and murdered at least one in every family. Ostracized from regular society, joining The Authority was probably the only option he had. Cody was respected around these quarters, but mainly because he was feared more than anything. He was cunning and calculating, sullen and sadistic, and you never knew when he was coming until it was too late. That was the most dangerous type of person on this earth and Cody Rhodes was all that and more. Seth mostly kept him at arm's length. That was the best distance.

Roman had returned by the time Seth was done with his work out. They were working on some research together when Seth received a text message from Lily.

_Are u as bored as I am right now? :P_

A goofy grin formed on his face as he replied:

_Only bored cos I miss u._

"You really like her, don't you?"

Seth tensed up a bit before meeting Roman's all-knowing stare. "I do."

Roman paused, choosing his next words wisely. "Be careful, man. A lot of nosy dudes around these parts, ya know what I mean?"

He knew exactly what the big man meant. "She's nobody's business but mine, Roman. I plan to keep it that way," he replied calmly.

"Good." Roman nodded. "I gotta meet this girl, though. She's worked some magic on you. You're so chill these days."

"As opposed to my former maniacal self?" Seth raised an eyebrow in amusement. "I think you have me mistaken for Ambrose or Rhodes."

Both men looked at each other, smiling broadly. Seth knew Roman was only looking out for him and for that, he was grateful.

* * *

_**A/N: Just to point out that I'm channeling the mask-wearing Cody from a few years back in this story. He was awesome. Kindly review! :D**_


	9. Stephanie

**_A/N: Interesting reviews I received this time. Loved it! Big thanks to _**_CheekyClaudine, nikki1335, ILoveAnime89, typhoidcandy** and **Alexis Black-Reigns** for the feedback!**_

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One of the downsides to this profession was that you were not the only one watching people, waiting to strike. Someone else was watching you from the shadows somewhere, waiting to do the same to you. Assassins were not as incognito as they desired to be, and that was a bleak fact that Seth had to live with. Literally had to live with. Otherwise he would be dead by now. It was not uncommon to have a bounty on one's head. The nature of their work was accompanied by a nice little bullseye on their backs. Seth had fended off attacks once or twice before, by amateurs, and by some of the best, and was still standing. That was a feat in itself.

He headed down to the nearby Laundromat to get his laundry done. It was a small-sized establishment; breezy, very white, with European-style washing machines. He was glad to know that he was alone. He preferred days like these, when it was nice and quiet. He put his clothes in and took a seat on the bench connected to the wall to, resting his back against the wall. He shut his eyes, the sour, abrasive scent of laundry detergent wafting through his nostrils as U2 played somewhere in the background.

"Excuse me?"

Great, there went his alone time. Seth forced himself to open his eyes and found an attractive young brunette standing in front of him, holding a basket full of clothes. "I'm sorry to bother you," she said, "but have you got change for ten dollars? I'd have gone out to get some but I'm in a big hurry."

She looked imploringly at him. Hoping she would leave him alone after this, Seth smiled politely. "Sure." He stood up from the bench and jammed his hands into his pockets. "I'll see what I got."

"Thank you so much," she said, dropping her basket on the floor.

He should have known something was up when the hairs on the back of his neck suddenly rose as he searched for coins. From the corner of his eye he saw the subtle glint of the blade, heard the whoosh of her arm. He whirled out of the way just in time to see the knife slash the wall he'd been leaning against seconds ago. The fact that that strike had meant for his throat was not lost on Seth. Steadying himself, he turned to the woman, who, so innocent-looking moments ago, now had this demonic expression on her pretty face. Obviously she wasn't here to wash clothes.

She charged again, swiping wildly at him. Her blade ripped the front of his black T-shirt, missing his skin by millimeters. She lunged again, attempting to strike a blow to his head but he dodged it easily. The woman snatched a box of washing powder and threw the contents into his face. Seth hissed as the detergent stung his eyes, blinding him for a moment. Capitalizing on the distraction, the woman drove her open palm into his gut, knocking the wind out of him, and then roundhouse-kicked him in the head. Seth dropped to the ground and the woman brought her arm down hard, aiming for his chest. He rolled out of the way, the knife connecting with the tiled floor with a loud chink. He leapt to his feet and staggered into a corner, slumping against the wall. She burst forwards with the knife in the air, but Seth sidestepped her at the last second, and the knife lodged itself into the thick cork bulletin board behind him. He briefly watched her struggle to pull out the blade before delivering a vicious uppercut to her face. Her head snapped back, and grunting with pain, she released her grip on the blade. As she clutched her jaw, Seth seized her by the back of her shirt and threw her hard against a tumble dryer. She crashed unceremoniously to the ground, but like a cockroach she was back on her feet. Fixing bloodthirsty eyes at the taller man, she growled, impatiently brushing away the blood on her mouth with the back of her hand. For a tiny little thing, she was quite impressive. She obviously had no idea who she was dealing with. No matter, she would find out soon enough.

Seth held his arms up to shield his face as she delivered punch after punch with her fists. But her punches became sloppy as she began to wear out, and Seth found an opening. Weaving out of her attack, he grabbed her arm in mid-air and twisted violently. The sound of breaking bone echoed through the empty Laundromat, and she screamed in agony. Seth didn't pause for another moment. In the same fluid movement, he yanked the knife out of the bulletin board, maneuvered himself behind her, seized her in a headlock and tore her throat open. Blood gushed down the front of her body. Her final breaths came out in short, gurgling gasps, and her knees buckled, sinking slowly to the floor. Seth followed her all the way down, not releasing her until he was certain that she was dead.

His brown eyes darted around, wracking his brain as to where to stash away the evidence. Though there was little chance of him getting caught or being identified by anyone - the Laundromat was still empty and he already knew that there were no surveillance cameras here - he could not risk it. And after this, he knew he could not come here again.

He caught sight of an empty front-loading washer, and an idea came to his head. It would be a little messy, but it had to be done.

* * *

Santino was in the back office, enjoying a well-earned nap when a piercing scream jolted him awake, causing him to nearly fall out of his chair. Rubbing his eyes tiredly, the Laundromat manager stumbled clumsily out of the room and into the storefront. A hysterical old lady was pointing wildly at a washing machine, and what he saw promptly eradicated all sleep from his thoughts.

The water swirling inside the washing machine was crimson red, and if he was not mistaken, there were large clumps of what looked eerily like human hair rotating inside. The red substance began to trickle out of through the bowl and slide down the white surface, leaving pungent scarlet trails. The manager knew what it was before he dipped his finger in it.

Blood.

* * *

Seth stood in front of a familiar door, wondering whether to turn back or not. He'd been specifically warned not to come here but he had stopped following rules a long time ago.

He lifted his hand and knocked a few times before the door was opened by a beautiful, blue-eyed woman with long dark hair. Her posture was tense, as if awaiting an impending attack. Seth smiled brightly.

"Stephanie!" To this day he did not know if it was her real name, but it only added to her mystique. This was the woman who taught him everything he knew about this profession and was arguably the best of the best during her time. She was now retired and living alone in secrecy. He wouldn't admit it out loud, but Seth missed her presence at The Authority.

Relaxing her stance, the woman frowned. "What happened to your face?"

"Some girl." When she raised an eyebrow for further explanation, he simply added, "She's dead." The look in her eyes told him she understood.

Shaking her head, Stephanie turned and trudged back into the house. Seth followed her into the kitchen, watching her rummage through the refrigerator. The last time he had been here was a little over a year ago, and nothing about the house seemed to have changed. Everything was still neatly in place and in order. Just like how he knew Stephanie to be.

She blindly tossed a can of beer at him. He caught it easily and took a seat, the kitchen island separating them. "Lookin' good, pretty lady," he commented. His former mentor was surely in her late thirties now, but she still looked the same way she did the very first time they met at HQ.

Stephanie scoffed, returning to the cooking she had abandoned. "Can't say the same thing about you."

Seth hissed playfully and raised his beer in a toast. "Ooh, burn. I'll get you back...as soon as I think of something." The banter between them had always been a mainstay in their somewhat dysfunctional relationship. Both were always determined to out-do the other, but it was all done in good faith.

"So_ why_ are you here?" asked Stephanie. Feigning hurt, Seth tilted his head to the side. "Aw, come on, can't I pay a visit to my former mentor?"

"Still killing people for a living, then? Down, now," she frowned, pointing.

Sheepishly, Seth pulled his backpack off the countertop and set it on the floor. "Pretty much. Still retired from killing people for a living, then?"

"Happily. So which poor unfortunate soul have you bumped off recently?"

"John Cena," Seth said with a twinkle in his eye. Stephanie shot him a glance over her shoulder, and the bearded man could sense that she was impressed. "So that was you," she remarked.

"Yep. With Ambrose."

She made a sound. "Of course, the resident lunatic. I remember how well you, him and Reigns worked together. Always a crafty bastard, Cena was. But I guess if anyone could take him out, it'd be you."

A moment of awkward silence followed those words. Compliments from Stephanie were always few and far between, so he took them whenever he had the chance. "I brought you something," he said, reaching into his backpack and withdrawing a small brown package. Without warning he flung it at Stephanie's head with all his might. The woman spun around with speed that defied her age and caught the bundle cleanly with one hand. She glared incredulously at Seth. "Are you testing me, Rollins?"

Seth grinned like a kid. "You still got it."

With an expression that flitted between annoyance and embarrassment, Stephanie dropped the package on the table and tore it open to reveal a fat bundle of cash. She looked at Seth with a frown before tossing the package back to him. "You know I don't need that," she said.

It was true. She had indeed made a ton of money from her former job and was set for life. "I know," Seth shrugged, "but I always feel like I owe you for looking out for me all those years ago."

Stephanie snorted, shaking her head. "Trust me, I did not 'look out' for you. You don't look out for someone that way."

"So you're saying you regret everything you did with The Authority?"

"All I'm saying is that you'll learn soon enough that this isn't the life you want."

Seth made a face. "It's better than a nine-to-five job."

A frustrated sigh escaped Stephanie's lips. "I'm talking about a steady life, Seth; a family, security, normalcy; a _real_ life. Where you're not looking over your shoulder, wondering where the next attempt on your life is coming from."

Immediately, Seth's mind drifted to Lily. They'd been seeing each other for more than a month now. It wasn't the first time he'd thought about it. He'd thought about it a lot; if he really could give it all up for her; the money, the soul-satisfying rush of adrenaline. Each time he asked himself if he was ready to settle down, he wasn't sure. He didn't think Lily was ready either. They hadn't really talked about it. After all, they were both young with demanding careers; well, if he could call what he was doing a career. But it seemed to him that she was enjoying what they had for now. And so was he.

Stephanie noticed the faraway look in the young agent's eyes and her eyebrows shot upwards. "There's a girl now." It was more of a statement than a question. She watched him nod his head, his cheeks colored. "I take it she doesn't know about what you do?"

"You know she doesn't. And she doesn't need to," he insisted, scratching at his beard. "It's better that way."

Stephanie looked like she wanted to say something else, but thought better of it. Now was not the time. She presented Seth with a plate of food and sat down opposite him.

"So...tell me about her..."

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**_A/N: Kindly review._**


	10. Back and Forth

_**A/N: Shout out to **__typhoidcandy __**and **__nikki1335__**!**__** Enjoy chapter 10!**_

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_San Francisco, California_

Taking a lethargic drag from his cigar, Wade Barrett closed his eyes, letting the smoke invade his system, his eyes closed as he vaguely listened to his rambling right-hand man, David Otunga. Finally, he lifted up a finger to silence him, and Otunga's mouth immediately snapped shut. All of these lies spilling out of his mouth were giving him a headache.

"It is taking me six months – count it, gentlemen, six _fucking_ months – to get rid of this fool, Del Rio," Wade growled, his English accent thick and full of barely-restrained frustration. "I have gone through all of the best, David, and no one's gotten the job done. And now you expect me to believe that this bird can do the job better than all of my men?" He leaned back and puffed his cigar again.

Swallowing his pride as well as his fear, Otunga looked right at his boss. "I'm not messin' with you, Wade…she is the best of the best."

Wade observed Otunga and the rest of his henchmen; Gabriel, Slater and Jackson, and smiled to himself. Barrett reveled in the smell of fear, especially when it benefited him. And why not, after he had toiled for so long in this God-forsaken country to be able to evoke this type of reaction in many. It told him he had their respect. Otunga, his first recruit, definitely gave him his respect. The man was valuable to Barrett, having put his Law degree from Harvard to very good use in Barrett's favor many times before, and had proven to be the most loyal of all his subjects. But this entire farce regarding Alberto Del Rio was beginning to irritate Barrett. He had entrusted Otunga with such a simple task but he was proving himself to be highly incompetent. Barrett was angry, yes, but not angry enough to kill him. He wasn't going to face death, not this soon anyway. But this was his last chance to prove himself, and if he fucked it up, he could consider himself gone.

That was a promise.

Wade reclined in the leather chair and folded his hands over his chest, his chiseled, handsome face twisted with annoyance as he glared at Otunga, as if inspecting a pesky insect. Finally, he said, "You do know what will happen if you fail me yet again, David."

Otunga nodded. "Yes. But I swear to you, Wade; this woman is unlike any other. I have seen her," he replied, his voice wavering a little. He could almost feel the guillotine coming down on his neck. "Hell, I even brought her here. You will be impressed, I promise you."

Wade rolled his eyes, gesturing with one hand. "Fine. Show her to me then. And I'd _better _be impressed."

Letting out a soft sigh of relief, Otunga hastily made for the door and ushered the woman in. She entered silently, her face expressionless, her grey eyes steely and penetrating as she made her way towards Barrett, who stared at her, riveted. If Wade Barrett ever had a type of woman, here she was. She was beautiful; tall, confident, walking with the elegance of a queen. Her long blonde hair cascaded down her back. Her physique was slender but muscled, revealing her physical strength. For a fleeting moment Wade thought it a shame that such beauty should be wasted on such a bloody, violent profession. However, this only made her more appealing to him.

"I say," Wade purred, rising from his seat. "David neglected to tell me just how lovely of a woman he had found."

The woman stayed silent, but her icy gaze did not waver. She stood still as the burly Englishman approached, then circled her slowly. His dark eyes traveled down her body; her full lips; her buxom breasts, long legs, nice tight butt. She was physically flawless, very sexy, and Wade found himself thinking of other ways she could be…_useful_…to him.

Otunga, however, thought otherwise, and knowing very well of his boss's less-than-chaste intentions. There was no doubt whatsoever that she was very attractive, but this woman was anything but an implement to satisfy carnal desires. She was cold-blooded and merciless, bloodthirsty. Otunga could safely say, though not out loud, that he was quite afraid of her, perhaps even more than he was of his boss.

Barrett reached out and caressed her fair hair with his long fingers. The woman stiffened immediately. "I suggest you keep your hands to yourself, Barrett," she stated coolly, glaring at him from the corner of her eye.

Barrett chuckled softly, yet heeded her warning as he continued to examine her. "My fellow countryman, too. Very interesting. So you know my name?" he asked her.

Another woman would have been swept off his feet by his charm and good looks, but the woman did not seem impressed at all. The corners of her lips merely twitched, only slightly, as if asking if that question had been a joke. "Everybody knows who Wade Barrett is."

"So what's _your_ name?"

"Lily," she replied, after a moment's hesitation.

"Lily," Wade mused, smiling at her. "A pretty name to match the pretty face."

Again, there was silence from her, but she narrowed her eyes, the only sign of movement from her.

"So tell me. Why are you here?"

"To finish the job your men seem to find so difficult to accomplish," she replied calmly, looking around at the rest of them. The other men returned her glare, momentarily forgetting their apprehension.

"And why should I hire you?" Barrett inquired with a smile, leaning in close.

"Because I'm much more capable of getting it done than they are," she stated. She would never have made such a bold statement if it was not true.

Barrett contemplated her words for a moment, then said to her, "All right, then. Prove it. Kill him."

And he pointed his finger at David Otunga.

He and the rest of his men watched as before a wide-eyed Otunga could run or even protest, Lily was standing behind him. In one swift move, she grabbed his head and twisted violently, breaking his neck. He never made a sound.

All the other men gaped at their fallen comrade, swallowing hard.

Lily glared at Barrett. "Happy? Or would you rather I used a gun?" she asked, her tone emotionless.

Barrett snorted. "Clean, quick and concise! But that was easy. Any of the men standing in this room could have done that."

"Maybe," she shrugged. "But they haven't been able to kill Alberto Del Rio, have they? And you want him dead, am I correct?"

"Absolutely."

This conversation took place at ten in the morning. By six p.m. Alberto Del Rio was found dead on the Strip, his head blown apart by a single bullet. His murder made the headlines of the front page of the newspaper the next morning. The Vegas authorities were clueless as to who the killer could be. Del Rio had many enemies after all.

Wade grinned at the woman before him, presenting a silver briefcase to her. "You're hired."

"Thank you." She turned to leave when she felt Wade grab her arm, turning her around to face him again. She looked down at the large hand around her upper arm, and then back up at him.

There was a lascivious smile on his face, seemingly unaware of the rage building up in front of him. "How about dinner tonight?" he said. "I know one of the finest restaurants in this town. Maybe…" His eyes trailed down her body again, "we could get to know each other a little better."

She locked cold eyes with his. "I thought I told you not to touch me." And she struck.

It happened so quickly that none of his men even realized it until their boss staggered away from her, a surprised look on his face, his mouth hanging open as he gaped at the dagger buried inside his chest. Blood was already seeping through his white shirt.

Lily yanked the dagger out of his chest. Again, with that same breakneck speed, she threw the knife at Jackson, killing the big man instantly. She then drew out two handguns seemingly from out of nowhere and shot a single bullet into Slater and Gabriel's heads. Though Gabriel had reacted quickly, he was dead before he could even withdraw his gun.

Eyeing the bodies littering the floor for a moment, Lily then picked up her briefcase and walked out. Her cellphone vibrated, and she fished it out of her pocket and held it to her ear.

"Rose. It's done."

* * *

When Lily arrived at Seth's apartment the next morning, he was home to receive her. He had made sure to clear his weekend so that he could spend time with her before he had to leave for London for 'business'. He had cleaned the apartment (making sure that all his weapons and gadgets were well-hidden) and cooked for her. Seth preferred to think that he was the better cook. Of course, Lily begged to differ. She promised to learn more recipes just to show him up, and she would. Soon. When she had the time. Which was hardly ever.

The blond woman swept into the apartment, looking tired but stunning in a cream-colored business suit and carrying a roll-on suitcase behind her. "Seth," she gushed in her perfected American accent.

"Lily," he answered, his voice thick with affection. He scooped her up in his arms as her legs encircled his waist. Throwing her arms around his neck, she gave him a long, lingering kiss. "Mm," she murmured, "I missed you."

"I missed you more, beautiful." Kissing her a few more times, he set her back on her feet. "How was Cali?"

"Oh the usual; meeting up with the client, running around, planning, planning and _more_ planning." She rolled her eyes. "There's this girl from Dallas and she's planning her hen night in LA. She wants _everything_! Anyway, I did a little shopping for you, including a very potent shampoo to wash off that blond in your hair."

"You wouldn't dare!" Seth warned playfully, wheeling her suitcase into his bedroom. Lily had taken off her shoes and jacket and was watching the news. "No, I'm kidding. I actually like it. Gives you a bit of edge."

"I made lunch," he informed her, leaning over the sofa to kiss her.

"Aw, you take such good care of me," Lily gushed, threading her fingers through his hair. "Yes, please, I'm starving. And I'll have white wine if you've got any."

He was pulling away from her when something caught his eye.

"What happened to your arm?" He touched the reddened skin on her right arm with his finger. She shied away immediately. "Oh, that?" She made a dismissive gesture with her hand. "It's just a little bruise. You know how clumsy I can be sometimes." Actually, she got the bruise while dealing with Barrett, but he didn't need to know any of that. "So, what's for lunch?"

Seth eyed her skeptically. She often came back from her business trips with some sort of cut or bruise that always went unexplained. He knew she was an active girl: they went hiking, cycling or jogging together sometimes, and she had a black belt in jiu-jitsu. He let it go eventually. It probably _wasn't_ a big deal.

Lily hadn't missed the suspicious look on her boyfriend's face. She needed to be more careful and cover up her battle scars better. The last thing she needed was more questions, and she hoped he didn't ask again, for _both_ her sake and his.

* * *

Lily grew up wanting to be just like her father. He was a Judge in the Crown Court of London, and one of the most respected men in the country, famed for his hard-boiled, incorruptible nature. He also doted on his only child, giving her everything she ever wanted without spoiling her. Lily loved her mother dearly, but her respect lay firmly at the feet of her father.

She would never forget that Christmas night, her first holiday with her parents since enrolling into boarding school. Just a month before, her father had overseen the conviction of one of the most dangerous gang leaders in the UK, and his associates had sought revenge. Eleven-old Lily was held hostage at gunpoint in her own home and forced to watch as both her parents were tied up, doused in gasoline and burned alive. Lily was left to die as their home was subsequently set ablaze but somehow, she escaped without burns. She lived quietly with her father's sister until she began college.

Seven months after graduating college, she was recruited by F.L.O.R.A. It was there that she perfected the role that would ultimately define her life. She learned to mask her emotions, revealing only a cold façade in their place. Lily also mastered the invaluable art of patience, which helped her wait for eleven long years to get her revenge on the man who masterminded the savage murders of her father and mother.

She remembered running into him at a charity event. He didn't recognize her, but his face was burned in her memory. She remembered the way he touched her, the way he looked at her with hunger in his eyes as he asked her to join him in his hotel room. She remembered getting him intoxicated, and the anticipation, the adrenaline rushing through her as she looked him right in the eyes. She remembered the horror and fear in them as she told him exactly who she was before tipping him over the balcony, watching as he plummeted twenty-five stories to his death. She remembered feeling nothing at all as she watched him fall. That night completed her transition into a cold-blooded killing machine, devoid of all compassion, committed to nothing else other than her job and carrying the memory of her beloved parents. For a long time this was her way of life.

Until she met Seth Rollins.

Their meeting at the _Primetime Lounge_ was nothing but chance. Posing as a party-goer, she'd killed off the aide to the Mayor of Miami. She was a second away from disposing of those two fools blocking her path of escape when this hot, funny guy showed up and swept her off her feet. She hadn't touched the ground since.

The effect Seth had on her in such a short time scared her. He was re-opening those windows to her soul, breaking down walls she'd spent years building, and making her feel things she never thought she would feel. She'd never expected to get this deeply involved with a civilian, but there was a magnetic quality about him that she found impossible to resist. Still, her life was good at the moment and she tried not to think about the cons.

After everything she'd been through, she deserved some happiness. Seth made her happy and that was all that really mattered to her.

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_**Thanks for reading! Kindly review!**_


	11. The Viper Strikes

_**A/N: Thank you to **__nikki1335__** and **__typhoidcandy__** for reviewing! Thanks to all the favorites and follows as well!**_

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It was a beautiful night to throw the biggest party in Manhattan.

Tony Nelson was one of the most powerful politicians in New York. His annual Gala Night was the party every important person wanted to be at. Bigwigs from across America showed up every year, pretending to be interested in the hot air the other schmuck was blowing and throwing obscene amounts of money on some mundane charity just to one-up their rivals. But tonight, The Authority was interested in just one person.

The agents had their target well scouted. Eva Marie Nelson was Tony's only child and her Daddy's pride and joy - at least in public, she was. Behind closed doors they were constantly at loggerheads, with Daddy adamant that his precious daughter was hell-bent on dragging his name and political ambitions through the mud with her tabloid-worthy antics. He forced her to attend his party to show the solidarity that had long ceased to exist between them.

She wore a pretty blue dress and a gold necklace with a key pendant. Anyone else would have dismissed it as just another ornament, but the agents knew better. That key contained access to the information they were required to retrieve.

Randy Orton joined Rollins, Reigns and Ambrose on this assignment. If Cody Rhodes was a dangerous sociopath, Orton was a much more amplified, far more sadistic, more vicious upgrade. He was nicknamed the Viper for a very good reason, reasons the other three men had witnessed and wished they never had. As much of a sociopathic asshole as he was however, he was extremely charming and persuasive when he wanted to be. Women were putty in his hands. Tonight would be no different.

"A Cristal, please," he told the bartender, leaning against the bar. The redheaded girl turned at the sound of his voice, taking in the hot guy that looked like he'd just stepped out of a GQ photo shoot. He met her entranced gaze and a flirty smile formed on his face. "Smashing party, isn't it?"

She gave an exaggerated roll of her eyes as she played with the rim of her champagne flute. "If you say so," she said, her words slightly slurred.

"You sound thrilled," he joked. He eyed her for a moment then extended his hand. "I'm Keith."

She hesitated at first, then took his hand. "Eva Marie."

"I know who you are, Miss Nelson." She looked over at him in surpriseand spotted the wily glint in his eye. "Everyone does. You're Manhattan's It girl."

Chuckling softly, Eva Marie said, "So, the tales of my debauchery have crossed over to the UK." At his puzzled look, she added, "I may be buzzed but I can still recognize the accent."

"Yeah, you got me," he conceded, resting his back against the bar.

"So what brings you to New York, Keith?"

He shrugged. "Not much; traveling the world, seeing the sights, blowing my dad's money and pissing him off in the process." He gave her a knowing look. "You're not the only one with Daddy issues, Eva."

"Well, your dad doesn't drag you to all these stuffy parties to meet people you couldn't give a shit about if they paid you," she replied sardonically.

Crossing his arms over his chest, he leaned closer to her, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "I must say, though; I'm surprised you're here. From what I've heard, you couldn't care less about what dear old Daddy says."

She started to say something, but stopped and shook her head. "Look Keith, the last thing I want to do is talk about my father or anything related to him, so let's change the subject shall we?" Taking another sip of her drink, she felt his lingering gaze on her and faced him with a smile. "See something you like?"

"Nice necklace," he commented.

"Hmm. Wanna know a secret?" The alcohol was speaking for her now. "This isn't just a necklace," she whispered.

"What do you mean?"

_Oh my God, his eyes._ "Well, you see those huge bald guys over there?" she gestured subtly at two massive men, bodyguards surely, who were staring right at them. "There's a box of diamonds belonging to my father lying safely at the bottom of the Long Island Sound. This-" she casually stroked the pendant, "-is the only thing that can open that box. My father doesn't want the key out of his sight, so I'm under their protection." She rolled her eyes. "That's the only time he ever pays attention to me these days; when he's using me as a mule."

"Well, let's be honest," he said softly, "_I_'d never let you out of my sight either." His eyes traveled down her body and he licked his lips slowly.

"You're hot," she blurted out. Her eyes widened, while his lips curved into an amused smile. "I mean...your _accent_ is hot. I mean..." She groaned, looking away and pressing a hand to her forehead. "I'm sorry. I say a lot of crap when I'm drunk."

In a move that sent her heart racing, he took Eva Marie by the waist and pulled her gently to him until their faces were inches apart. "You know what they say about being drunk," he whispered in a low voice, and Eva felt her knees weaken. "Sometimes, the truth tends to come out."

Her breathing quickened when he lifted his hand and tucked a stray strand of wavy red hair behind her ears. He then made a light trail down her throat with his finger, never taking his incredible eyes off her. Eva Marie was seconds away from planting a big kiss on his lips when the bartender finally showed up with his champagne. Taking the bottle, he moved away from Eva Marie. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Eva Marie Nelson."

"Where are you going?" she asked, unable to hide her disappointment. She didn't want him to leave, not after teasing her like that.

"Out of here. Got places to go, people to see..."

"I wanna come with you," said Eva Marie, looking at him like she wanted to rip off his suit then and there.

"Very tempting," he smirked, "But I doubt Daddy dearest would like the idea of his little Princess frolicking with a stranger."

"Oh please. He won't even notice I'm gone." She raised a perfectly sculpted eyebrow tauntingly. "What's the matter, Keith? Can't handle me?"

He tilted his head in thought. "I'm always up for a challenge. Meet me at the entrance downstairs in twenty minutes. Oh, and ditch the bodyguards, will you?"

"Of course."

"Better not stand me up, Princess. My heart's been broken too many times already." And with a kiss to her hand and a flirty wink, 'Keith' disappeared.

Seth watched Eva Marie stare after his colleague with a hungry look on her face. Poor girl. All she wanted was a little attention.

As Randy approached him, the two-tone-haired man lifted his glass at him in a small toast. "Very well done, Mr. Orton."

"Pfft. Too easy," Randy retorted flippantly. "The diamonds are under water, just as we suspected. She wants to meet up. I can get the key then and by morning, we'll be gone."

Roman rejoined them, looking concerned. "We got a problem, boys. The Outlaws are here. They're planning on taking our girl tonight."

The Outlaws were a ruthless gang from Yonkers. The Agents had heard of them and none of the stories made pleasant listening. "You're shittin' me," Dean said next to Seth. "So what do we do?"

"Nothing." They all looked at Randy in surprise. "There's some heavy security detail on that key. The Outlaws taking her will throw everyone off our scent," he explained. "I put a tracking device in her hair. We'll find her wherever they take her." He popped open the champagne and refilled each of their flutes. "Let them do the dirty work for us."

Seth looked to Roman and Dean. It was a smart plan. Roman blew out a breath in resignation. "This is gonna be fucking messy."

"So be it," said Dean. "Once we get the coordinates we'll stake out the place, and at dawn, we strike."

"I always love a good old-fashioned beat down," Seth commented, and the four men clinked their glasses together.

* * *

It all went as Randy predicted. Eva Marie was kidnapped and all of New York was searching for her. The Agents were already one step ahead of everybody else.

The trail led them to a dingy street off Central Park. The street was quiet, deserted even, the perfect place to hide a hostage. A short staircase sloped down and out of sight, leading to a wooden door painted in an ugly shade of green. Roman turned to Dean. "All yours, man."

The man's face lit up. "With pleasure." Stepping forward, he affixed two small devices to the hinges of the door. Pressing some numbers on each device, he took several steps back. "Take cover, boys!"

The other three didn't need telling twice. Seconds later, there was a loud explosion, with debris and splintered wood flying as the door was blown open. The Agents charged into the building, running up a flight of stairs and making light work of some men who were clearly disoriented from the blast. Other men rushed down to attack them. Dean intercepted one, knocking him into the wall while Seth blindsided another, giving Roman and Randy a clear path up the rest of the stairs.

Roman kicked down the first door. He grabbed the man coming at him and easily flung him across a wooden table. Randy smashed a glass vase onto another's head and sent him flying into a bookshelf with a vicious kick. Seth tackled a man that was heading for Randy, throwing him down to the ground.

There was one room left. Its door was flung open and a gun was pointed in Dean's face. With an expert swipe of his hand, Dean knocked the gun aside and dragged the man through the door by his collar, throwing him hard against the wall. He proceeded to kick him until he was unconscious.

Randy walked slowly into the room, approaching a bound, gagged and wide-eyed Eva Marie. He dropped to his knees in front of her and removed the cloth from her mouth. She swallowed in gulps of air before speaking, filled with shock and panic. "Oh God, Keith! What are you doing here? How did you find me?"

"Are you alright?" he cut her off, gazing at her intently.

"Yes, I...Keith, you can't be here, it's too d-"

That was all she got out before he kissed her.

At the doorway, Seth heard her soft whimper, saw her lean into Randy. All he could think about was how she didn't deserve what was coming to her.

As Randy continued to kiss Eva Marie he slid his gloved hand along her throat. With one tug, the necklace snapped from her neck. Eva Marie jerked back at the sound, gasping when she saw him hold up the pendant between his thumb and forefinger. "What are you doing?" she stammered.

"Let's go, Randy!" Dean ordered from beside Seth.

Eva Marie was confused. "_Randy_?" She looked back at Randy, slowly began to put two and two together. "You used me," she hissed accusingly.

He wasn't fazed in the least. Wrapping the cloth around his fist, he straddled her hips and watched her face crumble to one of shock as he spoke in his usual American accent. "Nothing personal, Princess," he hissed. "Just business."

Without warning, he pressed the cloth hard over her face. Eva Marie's muffled protests were blocked out by the thick material, cutting off her air supply. She jerked and twitched as she fought for her life, but Randy held her down. It was over in less than a minute. Her body slumped lifelessly against the wall.

Randy straightened up, his handsome face an expressionless mask as he tossed the key to Dean. They exited the building and drove straight to the Long Island Sound. It didn't take long to fish out the silver box encasing the diamonds. Seth shook his head. Eva Marie Nelson had to go. The clients insisted on sending a warning to her father and they succeeded. Not only had they taken his diamonds, they had taken his daughter's life.

And he felt guilty.

"You didn't have to kiss her, you know," Seth reprimanded Randy, who shrugged as he inspected the box. "What do you care, Rollins? Thought you had a girlfriend. She not doing the business anymore?"

Before he realized it, Seth was in Randy's face. "Do _not_mention her again," he snarled.

The older man smirked maliciously. "Ooh, did I hit a nerve?"

"Hey, break it up, alright?" Roman subtly eased himself between them, shooting them warning looks. Randy held his hands up but kept his suspicious stare on Seth. Seth kicked himself mentally for letting his guard slip, in front of _Randy Orton_, no less. He knew it could not happen again.

He shuddered to think what would happen if it did.

* * *

_**A/N: Kindly review!**_


	12. Falling

_**A/N: Thank you to **__nikki1335__** for the review. It seems that no one cares about this fic enough to give feedback, but I guess I'll keep on writing, at least for those who are still reading. Enjoy!**_

* * *

Lily's eyes flew open at the sound of her ringing phone. Swearing under her breath, she fumbled with it, trying to shut it off and hoping she hadn't woken Seth. She checked the text that had come in and rolled her eyes. She turned her head as Seth slowly rolled over onto his side, his eyelids lifting to reveal those beautiful brown irises of his. "Mornin'..." he murmured, his voice still husky from sleep, "Something wrong?"

"No," Lily groaned, dropping back down on the bed and facing him. It was work, but he didn't need to know that. "Sorry I woke you."

"Don't worry about it." Seth draped his arm over her slender frame. "So...we could just stay here instead of going to the fair today, you know." He trailed lazy kisses along the curve of her neck. "You and me...alone...a big bed all to ourselves..."

Lily smiled widely at the mischief in his eyes. "You'd rather I stay here as your sex slave, wouldn't you?"

"Your words, not mine, but brilliant idea."

Lily burst out laughing, and only stopped when Seth pulled her in for a kiss, one that went on and on and would have become something more if she hadn't pulled away giggling. "I'm off to get ready. We have a long journey ahead of us. And you are in desperate need of a shower; you stink."

Seth watched her saunter into his bathroom, then reached underneath his bed. He drew out the assault rifle he'd forgotten to stash away the night before and returned it to its rightful place as quickly as he could. He walked into the bathroom for his morning piss. The Plexiglas of the shower stall caught his eye. It was foggy from the hot water, but Seth could still see the curvaceous outline of Lily's silhouette. His breathing grew heavier as he watched her spread the lather over her naked body with her hands. He was aroused in seconds. Shedding his clothes, he climbed into the shower and shut the glass door behind him.

Lily turned, surprised. "Seth..." Her mouth went dry as she took in his naked form, and her knees went weak at the hunger in his eyes.

"I need a shower, remember?" He gave her no other chance to speak as he pushed her up against the wall.

The moment their lips met, it was as though time had stopped. Their tongues clashed fervently, craving the taste of each other, the heat of their desire radiating through the small enclosure. Seth's long fingers threaded through Lily's wet hair as their kiss intensified. His hands moved down her shoulders to her breasts, cupping them. He then attacked Lily's neck with his lips, his hard body pressing against hers. She dragged her fingers down his muscled back, pulling him even closer, if that was possible, then lifted her leg and locked it around his hip. His low growl vibrated in his chest, and in one smooth move he lifted her up and braced her against the wall. Lily held him tight, crying out as he entered her.

Seth tried to move gently, cautious that they were in a shower, but he couldn't, not after feeling how hot and wet and ready she was for him. Lily clung to his waist with her thighs, merging him even deeper with her. Gasping with pleasure, she threw her head back as he thrust into her, harder and harder, each press of his body sliding her up and down the wall. Seth saw stars. She was so tight, so wet. Everything about her drove him insane. Digging her fingers into his wet hair, Lily kissed him hungrily, nibbling his lower lip with her teeth. She moaned into his mouth during a particularly deep push, feeling the muscles inside her squeezing him tightly.

Holding her in place with his body, Seth rocked his hips slowly, sliding his hardness in and out of her in a tortuously measured rhythm. The sound that left her mouth nearly made Seth orgasm then and there. "You like that, babe?" he breathed, looking up at her through his lashes.

Lily's head was spinning. "Seth...fuck...harder...make me come," she begged breathlessly, tugging the back of his hair impatiently.

The combination of the soap and the warm water and Lily's moaning sent Seth into another gear. His pace quickened again, filling her with deep hard thrusts. Both of them were close, they could feel it. "Fuck, Seth!" Lily gasped, raking her nails over his back, "Yes, yes...oh _fuck_..."

They came together, and Seth slumped against her, pressing her to the wall with his weight. His face remained in the crook of her neck as he tried to catch his breath. Lily's fingers raked the back of his head, kissing his temple. After a few moments, Seth pulled out and set her down on her feet. "Perfect start to my morning," he commented breathlessly, brushing her lips with his.

Lily had just gone to heaven and back. "Absolutely perfect."

* * *

The fair was a three-hour drive, and a fun one at that. Seth rolled down the windows of his SUV and he and Lily screamed along to the eighties songs on the radio, laughing crazily whenever fellow drivers gave them strange looks. Lily thought it was nice that Seth was taking her to the fair for their date. It was a very spontaneous decision by him. She liked spontaneous.

"Ooh, I want that bunny rabbit!" Lily pointed at one of the more interesting-looking stands, batting her eyelashes at Seth. "Defend my honor and win it for me?"

Seth laughed, squeezing her hand gently as they walked over to the stand. He handed some money over to the attendant, who explained in an exaggerated Italian accent that Seth needed to shoot down all six cans stacked up. Lily had to laugh at the man. Good to know she was having a much better time at juggling two accents at once.

Seth was given a small rifle-like gun. He aimed but missed the first can. "Come on, babe! You can do it," Lily clapped, pausing when her handbag accidentally dropped to the floor. Taking advantage of her distraction, Seth narrowed his eyes and aimed again. With lethal precision, he shot down every can.

"Oh, wow, Seth! You did it!" Lily had thankfully missed the whole thing. He lifted his shoulder in a nonchalant shrug. "Beginner's luck," he offered.

Seth gave Lily the rabbit and was handing the gun back to the attendee when he spotted a small boy clinging to his mother's hand, staring wistfully at a large teddy bear on the shelf. Seth walked over to him and crouched down to his eye level. "Hello, little man. What's your name?"

"Donnie."

"Hi, Donnie. I'm Seth. Would you like to have that teddy bear over there?" He pointed, and the little boy's eyes lit up before nodding his head.

Donnie's mother spoke up. "Oh no, I don't want to trouble you," she said to Seth. "I'm just not very good at these games."

"It's no problem at all. Gimme a second." Seth smiled at the woman and paid the attendant again. He shot down all the cans once more, a little less skillfully this time, earning a round of applause from Lily, Donnie and his mother. Seth bowed exaggeratedly and gave the teddy bear to a beaming Donnie.

"Thank you!" The little boy stared up reverently at Seth, holding the bear tightly to his chest.

"You're welcome." As Seth stood back upright, Donnie's mother clutched his forearm. "Thank you so much," she said sincerely, her eyes shining with happiness.

Lily's heart swelled as she watched the entire exchange. It was the sweetest thing she'd ever seen.

As they walked away from the stand, hand in hand, she looked over at Seth. "That was really amazing of you."

"It's no big deal," he shrugged, stopping in his tracks when Lily suddenly planted her lips on his in a long, passionate kiss. When she pulled away his expression was dazed. "Well, if I'm going to get a kiss like that I should win teddy bears for little kids more often."

They went on the Ferris wheel, played other games and ate a whole load of cotton candy. A couple of hours later, Seth was in dire need of a bathroom. "I'll be back in a minute," he told Lily. "Don't wander off."

"I won't, daddy," Lily said, rolling her eyes.

"God, do you know how hot that sounded?" he whined, taking off before he ravaged her where she stood.

Lily watched him walk away with a smile on her face. Just then someone spoke from behind her.

"Ooh, look who we have here, boys."

Lily turned to see a group of young hooded men, about five of them, surrounding her. They looked to be in their teens and early twenties. Clearly these were the troublemakers in this area; the ones that looted and booted and gave everyone a scare. "You all by yourself, sweet cheeks?" one of them asked.

Digging her hands in her pockets, she ducked her head. This was the last place she wanted to draw any unnecessary attention, especially with Seth around. "No, I'm waiting for my boyfriend."

"This boyfriend of yours should know better than to leave you all alone," the talkative one said, the one Lily chalked up to be the leader. "Move along, guys," she advised, "You really do not want to do this."

"What's the matter, babe?" the leader retorted, advancing. The rest of his group watched intently, almost goading the young man on. "We're just having a little fun."

"There's a lot of rides around," said Lily. "Have fun with those and leave me out of it." She started to walk away, bracing herself for what she was sure was coming next.

"Oi, I ain't done talking to you, bitch!" His hand clamped down on her shoulder and forced her around to face him. Lily grabbed his arm and twisted it so hard it popped out of his shoulder socket. The man dropped to one knee screaming. Lily silenced him by viciously driving her knee into his face. His head snapped back and he dropped to the ground, unconscious. The other men looked at each other. They should have realized that this wasn't some chick that had enrolled in self-defense classes. Still, they charged at her. Lily smiled. This would be too easy.

By the time she was done, all five men were in a bloody, broken, dazed heap at her feet. It was quite the "blink and you'll miss it" moment. Placing her hands on her hips, she raised an eyebrow at them, speaking in her natural English accent. "I'm only gonna say this once. Fuck off."

Their eyes widened with fear. Dragging their unconscious leader with them, they scrambled away with their tails between their legs. Lily rolled her eyes and blew out an annoyed breath. Arseholes.

Her heart leapt in her throat as she spotted Seth walking back. He was still a bit far off but she had to wonder if he had seen any of what just transpired.

"Sorry I took so long." He peered at her. "You alright? You look flushed."

He seemed none the wiser. Thank goodness. "Really? Didn't notice," she replied. "I guess it's the heat."

"Yeah, it _is_ a bit hot, but I'll take it over the cold any day." He held out his arm. "Shall we?"

They watched the fireworks display that came on late in the evening. About ten minutes had passed before they decided a make-out session would be more fun. Seth and Lily lay on the hood of his SUV, a blanket underneath them, loud David Guetta music playing from one of the other visitors' cars. He leaned over her, his hand lazily stroking her thigh, and her leg was draped loosely over his waist. Seth could kiss Lily forever. Her lips were intoxicating, and once he got started he didn't seem able to stop.

Lily's hands snaked up along his chest. "I don't want this day to end. It's been amazing," she whispered.

Seth stared at her, wondering how to say what was on his mind without potentially scaring her away. Lily noticed the look on his face. "I can see you thinking," she observed, playing with his hair. "Talk to me."

_Okay Rollins, it's now or never._ "Lily...I know it hasn't been too long since we started hanging out...but I really like what we have, and I really like you." He focused momentarily on their intertwined fingers. "Basically I wanna ask if you'd like us to be...you know...exclusive."

His eyes searched hers almost nervously. An amused smile spread slowly across her face. She'd never seen him like this before, and it was adorable. "Are you asking me to be your girlfriend?"

A blush colored his cheeks. He lowered his head, letting their foreheads touch. "Yeah...I guess I am."

Deep down Lily had hoped he was. She had referred to him as her boyfriend earlier, and it felt good. "Exclusive. I like the sound of that."

Seth's heart skipped a beat. "Is that a yes?"

Biting her lip shyly, Lily nodded. She looked deeply into his brown eyes and realized she was falling for him. The notion thrilled and scared her at the same time, yet she didn't want to stop feeling the way she did.

He broke into a huge grin and kissed her tenderly. This was it right here. This was what he wanted and he didn't care what anybody else thought. Lily was his now. Everyone else could go fuck themselves.

* * *

_**A/N: Kindly review. It's always nice to hear what you think. :)**_


	13. Before The Storm

_**A/N: Big thanks to **__**Alexis Black-Reigns**__**, **__**Guest and **__**nikki1335**__** for the reviews! Also, a big thanks to everyone else reading, favoriting and following! I appreciate it! Enjoy 13!**_

* * *

Lily was walking on air after a fantastic few days with her new boyfriend, and her mood had not changed when she got to the office. The only thing that somewhat dampened her sunny disposition was the cryptic phone conversation with Rose earlier in the morning. Apparently, she needed her to come in ASAP. Rose was not a woman of many words but the exchange had her puzzled. What was so urgent that couldn't be discussed over the phone? "Is this about the Wade Barrett file?" she asked Rose as she walked into the command center, "I thought we wrapped that up."

Her steps slowed when she took in the several grim faces that greeted her, and she realized how quiet the entire room was, further accentuated by the loud humming of the computers flooding with data and live feeds. Growing agitated, the blonde woman turned to Rose with narrowed eyes. "What's going on?"

The Boss sighed heavily and looked her best agent in the eye. "Daisy's dead."

Lily stood frozen. She felt as though she'd walked into an invisible wall. Her grey eyes were wide as they fell upon the seat where the aforementioned young woman usually occupied and sure enough, it was empty. It was a couple of seconds before Lily found her voice again. "What happened?" she demanded.

"It was a hit," Petunia explained, "Her body was found in a washing machine in a launderette. We don't know who did it, and they didn't find the person either. It's safe to say whoever she encountered was highly skilled."

Stunned, Lily locked eyes with Jasmine, silently begging her to tell her this was a joke, but the redhead only shook her head sadly. "How long will it take to find the bastard?" Lily asked Rose, her tone clipped and cold.

One of the younger operatives, Poppy, spoke up. "We're still working on it, Lily. But as soon as we're done, you will be the first to know."

Lily nodded at Poppy's words. Jasmine placed her hand on Lily's shoulder sympathetically, knowing how fond her English colleague was of Daisy. The blonde turned away from the others. She was showing emotion again. Though it wasn't made public knowledge, she knew it was frowned upon within these walls, dismissed as childish weakness. She could feel everyone's eyes on her. A lot of them were not used to seeing her ruffled. They knew Lily to be cool, calm, collected and lethal. As tragic as the situation was, she had a reputation to uphold. She still needed to be professional. She addressed the room, her voice calm but detached. "Daisy was a valuable asset to F.L.O.R.A. She gave everything to this company, and it's a shame she'll never get to realize her full potential."

Violet, standing between Buttercup and Poppy, tossed her long dark hair back and smirked at Lily. "Nice save, Blondie. For a second there I thought you were going to cry," she giggled snidely, going quiet when Jasmine shot her a deadly glare. "What?"

Ignoring the tattooed woman, Lily looked over at Rose. "So, that can't be all you summoned me here for."

"You're right. Step into my office with me."

Lily followed Rose to a room in the far corner of the command center. Rose seldom let operatives into her inner sanctum, no matter their rank, so this had to be important. The office had a woman's touch, spiced up by three large flat-screen computers, as highly advanced as all the technology in the command center, fused into the wall on the left side of the room.

"I've got an assignment for you," said Rose. "It's classified 'Above Top Secret', so you have to treat it as extremely sensitive."

"Hmm. Must be serious, then," Lily remarked, crossing her arms.

"It is. This is your next target." Rose tapped computer screen in the middle, where the image of a familiar, flamboyantly-dressed young man appeared. Lily raised an eyebrow in recognition, an amused smirk tugging at her lips as she faced Rose. "Is that who I think it is?"

* * *

"Is that who I think it is?" Seth asked, glancing over at Hunter.

"Yes. The one and only Dolph Ziggler, the most sought-after reporter on the planet, in more ways than one it seems," the older man replied, crossing his massive arms over the front of his smart grey suit.

"Definitely the _loudest mouth_ on the planet," Seth added with a shake of his head. Ever since he blew the whistle on the covert operations of the National Security Agency as well as other international intelligence organizations, Ziggler had been running his mouth on every radio and TV station, cashing in on his newfound fame. Clearly, someone was tired of hearing him flap his gums. Seth knew _he_ was.

Hunter went on. "This assignment, should you choose to accept it, involves the elimination of the above named target and must be completed within seventy-two hours. You up for it?"

Seth scratched at the blonde side of his hair. "At the risk of sounding like a greedy old hag...how much is on the table?" There was no way this would be cheap. A lot of people were demanding for Ziggler's head on a platter.

With a smile, Hunter tapped the screen, which immediately scattered with numbers and statistics. Seth saw the relevant figure and whistled. "A hundred grand?"

"In euros," Hunter clarified, and Seth's eyebrows shot up to his hairline. No one had ever paid that kind of money before. It was too good to turn down. "So where's this little escapade taking me?" he inquired.

* * *

"The target will be attending the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight taking place at the MGM Arena in Las Vegas this weekend," said Rose. "He's specifically requested for a lovely young lady to escort him to the fight."

"And that would be me," Lily finished, rolling her eyes.

"Affirmative. I suggest you stick by him at all times. Stay close. Kiss his ass if you need to. If he's going to take a piss, be there. Be the clingy girlfriend nobody wants."

Clingy wasn't really her thing, but the blonde woman never had issues immersing herself into a character. "I'll need to assemble a team," Lily stated. "Knowing Ziggler, he will not be walking around without heavy security detail. We need to explore all possibilities."

Rose nodded. "Of course. Select your team members at your discretion."

* * *

Seth picked Emma and the twins Jimmy and Jey, three young, intelligent agents, as his team members. He briefed them on the assignment and discussed strategy with them for the rest of the day. "The three of you are going to be my eyes and ears in that building. I want logistics of every entrance and exit point and the seating arrangements of all the guests in attendance. Any questions so far?" There were none. "Good. Get started. We've got only three days to work with."

* * *

"Hi, baby."

"Hey, beautiful." An exhausted Seth lay down on his bed, throwing his arm over his face. "How did your day go?"

Lily groaned. "Long. Hectic. Annoying. Worst of all, I'm going to be stuck working my ass off for another couple of days."

"That makes two of us," said Seth. "The firm just landed this huge contract and I'm team leader. It's looking like another crazy week."

"It sounds pretty crazy. Good luck."

She didn't sound her usual happy, confident self, and the dark-haired man could tell there was something wrong. "Are you alright, babe?" he asked his girlfriend.

"Not really," Lily confessed, sighing heavily. She sounded on the verge of tears. "I, uh...I found out my colleague passed away today."

Seth sat up. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry. What happened?"

"Don't really know; an accident or something. I really liked her. I, um, volunteered to take over her brief and it turned out she's behind schedule. That's why I'm going to be so busy. I have some catching up to do. I'll let you know when it's over."

"Of course. Keep me posted."

"I will. I'm sorry, Seth," Lily said sincerely. "I know we were meant to do something together this weekend-"

"No, don't apologize, sweetheart. It's your job. You do what you have to do. Don't worry about me, alright? I've been thinking though, we've been working so much lately. We're going to have to plan a vacation together soon. Just the two of us. Somewhere far away from here with lots of sun, white sand beaches and lots of fruity cocktails. How's that sound?"

"Absolutely amazing, baby. I can't wait. I'm in serious need of a break."

"Trust me, so am I," said Seth, lying on his side. "You sound so sad, Lil. It's breaking my heart. Tell me what to do to make you feel better."

Lily swallowed hard. They'd only spent a day apart and she was already missing him like crazy. "I just wish you were here right now, holding me."

"I'm sorry I'm not there with you," he answered in a soft voice.

"Me too. Just keep talking to me. I love hearing your voice."

"And I love hearing yours," said Seth. "I miss you, baby. I miss your beautiful eyes, the feel of your lips on mine and all over my body…your legs around my waist..."

"I miss you too. I miss touching you," Lily sighed, her voice reduced to a husky undertone. "I miss you touching me, you know I love your hands. They're so rough and soft at the same time, especially when they're between my legs..."

"Oh God." Shutting his eyes tightly, Seth bit down on his lip. He was seconds away from touching himself. "I need you here, beautiful. I don't think that naked photo of you is gonna be enough."

Lily giggled. "Hmm. Well, just in case, make sure you change the sheets should you change your mind. I sleep in that bed too, you know."

"Funny." Seth looked at his watch. "Ugh, it's getting late. I need to be up really early in the morning."

"So do I. I'll let you get your beauty sleep. By the way, I don't think I have that photo you're talking about. Send it to me, alright?"

"Narcissistic much?" Seth taunted, shaking his head.

"Oh, you know it."

They laughed together before the silence gradually fell between them. Lily loved that Seth always knew how to make her feel better, how to make her smile. How had she spent so long without him?

Seth felt those three words at the tip of his tongue, but he didn't dare let them loose. Not yet. He couldn't afford to fuck up the best thing to happen to him in a long time.

Lily spoke first. "Goodnight, Seth." _I'm falling in love with you._

"Sweet dreams, beautiful." _I think I'm in love with you._

After they hung up, Lily stared at her phone for a long moment. Stashing it away, she gazed out the window of the cab taking her to the airport, fiddling idly with the ends of her black wig.

* * *

_**I can safely say that things are going to pick up drastically from here. Buckle your seatbelts! :D Thank you for reading!**_


	14. Collision Course

_**Thank you **__nikki1335 __**and**__ TajiaK __**for reviewing! Thanks to the new followers and favorites! Enjoy 14!**_

* * *

The Pacquaio-Mayweather fight was being touted as the most talked-about match in a decade. It wouldn't be a special fight without the world's most talked-about journalist in attendance, and he didn't disappoint.

Dolph Ziggler emerged from the limousine to a sea of flash bulbs. He waved and smiled smugly at the screaming fans and press before reaching for the hand of his date.

Lily took his hand with a dazzling smile and walked with him into the building, two burly men following close behind them. Her blond hair was covered by a black wig styled in a bob with bangs. She hated the dress she was wearing but she had to look the part. Clueless, slutty and Russian. Behind her, one of Dolph's bodyguards carried was a silver briefcase containing a quarter of a million dollars, which he planned to splash around tonight. They had to go through security in the lobby of the MGM Arena. Dolph was checked, as was Lily. As she extended her arms to the side the guard frisked her slowly, deliberately. He then winked lasciviously, and it took everything in the blonde woman not to rip his eyeballs out of their sockets.

They had seats at the front row, with Dolph sitting between a bodyguard and Lily, another bodyguard sitting directly behind Dolph. Lily kept her gaze ahead as she listened to the conversation between Dolph and the bodyguard to his right, thanks to the tiny device she'd attached to Dolph without his knowledge.

Dolph turned to her with a smile. "So, Tatiana, enjoying yourself?"

Watching paint dry had to be a more riveting experience. "_Da_. Lot of fun," she gushed in a heavy accent, "I have never been to boxing match before."

Dolph' smile became a leer as he let his hand slide along her inner thigh. "Well, we're going to have a little match of our own a little later. I've been told you're the best at what you do."

"It is true," 'Tatiana' tilted her head proudly.

"Good. Otherwise you'd be of no use to me." And he turned away rudely. Lily paid no mind to his insolence. He would be dead soon.

* * *

The MGM Arena's backroom was chaotic. The Manager was fretting and yelling at everyone. "Hey!" He grabbed the new volunteer with the crew cut and thrust a pile of merchandise into his arms. "Make sure these get to the third, fourth, fifth and sixth rows. Take a right. You'll get there faster."

"Sure boss." The volunteer exited the backroom, but turned left instead. As he made his way down a dark, deserted area, he swiftly dumped the merchandise in the trash. He approached the back of the stands where the audience sat, shedding his MGM uniform one by one to reveal an all-black attire underneath. His black army boots thudded across the floor. He peeled off his prosthetic buzz cut, setting his blonde and black locks free.

A big box sat there for him. He opened the box, unveiling a long range sniper rifle, and tossed the clothes and fake hair into the box. He set the rifle in position and zoomed in on his target. There was no way anyone would see him, not until it was too late. "Harry in position," he spoke into his mic. "What's the SITREP?"

"George in position," Jimmy replied. "You're clear within a quarter-mile radius. Not a guard in sight."

"Hermione here," said Emma, "We'll give you the signal, after which you'll have exactly two hundred seconds to evacuate."

"Copy that. Fred, open up the exits for me once I make the hit."

Jey was typing furiously. "You got it, Boss."

The fight was about to start. Manny Pacquaio made his way to the ring first to rapturous applause. Then Floyd Mayweather appeared and the roof was nearly blown off. Seth kept his aim on Ziggler, waiting for the signal. He noticed the raven-haired floozy beside him, mimicking nearly everything he did. Ziggler sure knew how to pick his women. Nice legs though.

The fight was on its fourth round. Seth's gloved finger tightened on the trigger. "Harry to Hermione. Any time this century."

"You're clear. Take the shot."

Taking a deep, calming breath, he pulled the trigger. Once. Twice.

Lily spotted the bullet from the distance. It was practically invisible to the naked eye, but F.L.O.R.A. had trained her to see better, observe better. She'd almost seen it too late but she saw it, and that was what probably saved Dolph Ziggler's life.

Without thinking, Lily shot to her feet, getting in Dolph's way, and collapsed again as the bullet tore through her arm. The bodyguard sitting behind her got the second bullet in his face, dead before he hit the ground.

Chaos ensued. People were screaming and running left and right. The fighters were whisked away to safety. The surviving bodyguard immediately grabbed Dolph and dragged him out of the arena, leaving Lily to fend for herself.

Seth swore loudly. He missed. He _never_ missed. That dumb broad had gotten in the way. He had to move quickly to rectify his failure. Dumping the rifle back into the box, he took out a Zippo lighter, lit it and dropped it into the box. He raised a hand to his ear. "Change of plans," he told his team, walking briskly.

"What happened?" asked Emma, worried.

"I fucking missed." It sounded strange to his ears. "Fred, send me the coordinates to target's current location ASAP."

Ziggler had been moved to the penthouse suite, several floors away from his original accommodation. Seth was certain he was going to hide there until this mess was over. That was a good thing. Let Ziggler get himself cornered so Seth could take him out more easily. He found an empty elevator and hit the second to last button. He was going up to the roof.

* * *

Lily stumbled into an elevator, hissing with pain. Her left arm was bleeding. Even worse, she lost Ziggler. That trigger-happy bellend had scared him off.

"Lily! Lily! What happened? Talk to me," Jasmine was all but screaming in her ear.

"I've been hit. It's just a flesh wound," she hastily added before Jasmine could go into full-blown panic mode. She tore a strip from her dress and tied it over her wound. "There's another player on the floor."

"Okay Lily, we need you to abort," the Australian said.

She opened up her clutch bag, withdrawing the disposable bodysuit she'd kept inside. "Bollocks! He's on my spot. I can take him out."

"This is a bad idea, Lily. You're hurt! Abort mission."

"Negative! I came to do a job. He's on my square and I'm taking him out."

Jasmine sighed. "You've always been a stubborn bitch."

"Love you too, Jasmine. Now let me handle this." Getting to her feet, she got changed. She took off her black wig and tossed it aside, then pulled her beanie hat over her head, covering it with a hood, and concealed her face with a mask. The plan was to trail Dolph through the roof of the building. She could still hear Dolph talking through her other earpiece. He was hiding in the penthouse suite. Lily had to get there before they could leave.

Reaching the second to last floor, she hit the Emergency button, making the elevator screech to a halt. Pushing open the top of the carriage, she climbed up into the dark, vast tunnel-like space between the roof and the ceiling. She could find Ziggler's room, break in through the ceiling and carry out the hit without any further glitches.

Seth stopped moving, his ears perking up. Someone was up here in the roof as well. He could hear them. He drew out his gun, cocking it as quietly as he could. He peered into the darkness. If he listened hard enough, he could make out the pattern of the intruder's movements. Once he deciphered it, he would take the shot.

Through her infrared lenses, Lily saw a dark figure coming her way and immediately knew who it was. The bastard that shot her. It had to be. She crept quietly, slowly away from his line of sight. Counting to five in her head, she rushed towards the intruder. She heard small popping sounds and ducked immediately, avoiding the bullets by inches. She pounced on the intruder, knocking him down. She reached for his gun but he threw her off him and aimed the weapon at her again. Lily grabbed his arm and wrenched it upwards. The shot intended for her was fired in the air. She punched his arm repeatedly, making him release his hold on the gun, but was rewarded with a fist to her face.

Seth grabbed his rival by the shoulders and drove his knee into his face. The intruder responded with a vicious kick to his ribs. Seth bent over in pain and the intruder grabbed at his throat. Seth shoved the intruder backwards and in the same move, Seth charged and ploughed into him. The floor exploded underneath them and both were sent tumbling down into another hotel room below. They crashed through the glass coffee table, both bodies bouncing sickeningly against the hardwood floor.

For a long moment there was silence as both parties struggled to regain their bearings. Seth winced as he tried to sit up. That was some fall. Looking down at himself, he noticed the hat in his hand...and the hair inside.

Blond hair. Long, natural blond hair.

Then he heard the soft voice groaning in pain...a female voice.

No way! A _girl_?

Groaning, Lily clutched the top of her head. She felt like her hair had been pulled out by the roots. It took her a full five seconds to realize her hat was missing. Her mask was also gone, exposing her face. Fuck! She had to think fast.

Her eyes darted upwards, and an idea popped into her head. In a flash she withdrew a knife and threw it upwards like a dart. The knife sliced through the fluorescent, plunging the room into complete darkness.

Seth had barely gotten to his feet when the lights went out. He whirled round, body tensing instinctively and ready to attack. She was still inside the room with him; he could sense it.

Suddenly there was a great weight on his back. His attacker was on him, grasping at his neck, the positioning of her hands indicating that she was aiming to break it. Seth struggled in her grasp and grabbed at her hair, trying to throw her over his shoulder, but she did not budge, instead locking her legs around him. Christ, this bitch was strong! Seth then ran backwards into a wall, again and again, and that finally forced her to let go, but not before she got a handful of Seth's skin. Her fingernails dragged across his neck, causing Seth to yelp in pain. His attacker sat on top of him and drove her fists into his body. Desperately, Seth grabbed her by the hair and threw her aside like a rag doll, then shot to his feet, anticipating another attack.

It never came.

He heard the sound of approaching sirens and swore under his breath. He had to get out of here and fast. He rushed to the window and climbed out, making a clean escape. He needed to go lick his wounds, and ponder over how the hell he had his ass handed to him by a girl.

And when he found out who she was, he was going to find her and kill her.

* * *

Lily spun in a circle in the middle of her hotel room and cursed loudly. She was enraged; enraged by this intruder that had ruined her assignment; enraged that she'd been caught so off-guard by the whole thing. Worst of all, the bastard probably now had an idea of what she looked like. On the bright side, she had held her own against this obviously formidable fighter. But the thought did little to mitigate her self-disappointment. She'd botched the job, plain and simple. And Rose wasn't going to like it.

Her phone rang, rudely piercing the silence. Irritated, she snatched up the phone and sighed at the caller ID. Sure enough, it _was_ Rose. She knew she was going to get a right grilling in a few moments. She flipped the phone open and braced herself for an onslaught.

"For God's sake, Lily!" exclaimed Rose, "We lost track of you. What the hell happened?"

Lily knew lying would get her nowhere with Rose. "I got sidetracked," she admitted, bringing out a First Aid kit to tend to her arm. She put the phone on speaker.

"You were given specific orders to abort!" Rose was saying angrily.

"That bastard shot me!"

Rose went quiet, and Lily could tell she was trying to rein in her anger. "At least tell me you got rid of him," she finally said.

Who? Ziggler or the idiot that fucked up her night? Either way she'd failed at both. Lily sighed and ran her hands through her blond hair. "I can't."

"So Ziggler walks and your cock-blocker is still at large."

"This bloke was good Rose. Really good."

"You're supposed to be _better_. There's been plenty like him, Lily, and more times than not you were the last person they ever lived to see!"

Lily pursed her lips, the anger bubbling within her again as she heard the disappointed tone in Rose's voice. Rose regarded her, regarded them all, as indestructible machines, and it was a great weight on her shoulders. She needed to be perfect, yes, but she was no robot. As much as she hated to say so, she made mistakes. Today was another rare day. The 'plenty' she was talking about were walks in the park. This one was a seasoned pro. She herself couldn't get her head around it and that irked her.

There was tense silence at the other end of the line, then Rose sighed. "Fine. We'll get to the bottom of this. You'll report to base for your debriefing at twenty-two hundred hours sharp. Now get some sleep."

The line went dead. An angry Lily slapped the phone off the table, briefly watching it fly across the room, and stalked towards the bed. Dropping down, she leaned forward and placed her arms on her knees, staring blankly at her still-bruised palms. She needed a hot bath and a good night's sleep. Though she doubted she would get the latter, as she needed to work on exactly how she was going to explain tonight's debacle to Rose.

Absent-mindedly, she turned her hands over, inspecting the bruises on her knuckles. They were still raw, but it was nothing her manicurist could not fix. Her fingernails were red and bloody from when she'd clawed out his neck...

Blood.

_His_ blood.

Lily leapt off the bed, searching frantically through the First Aid kit before finding what she desperately needed. She pulled out a Q-tip, holding onto it like a lifeline. She ran the bud underneath her fingernails, scraping as much blood as she could. She found a little vial and enclosed the blood-stained Q-tip in it. She held it up in front of her, her silver eyes blazing with resolve and determination. This punk made her fail. She didn't like failing, so she was going to get even. In less than twenty-four hours she would discover the identity of the bastard.

And when she did, he would be lying in the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea.

* * *

_**Kindly review!**_


	15. Revealed

_**Thank you to **__Guest, TajiaK__** and **__nikki1335 __**for reviewing! Thanks to all the favorites and follows as well. Anyone else enjoy last night's SmackDown, or rather, ShieldDown? ;)**_

* * *

When Seth came storming into HQ, it was like the parting of the Red Sea, from the entrance all the way to the Control Room. All it took was one look at him to send everyone scurrying out of his way. He hardly got angry, not in public at least, but today he was livid. Fuming. Incensed.

Pissed off.

Cody Rhodes, however, was the only person in The Authority who seemed to have missed the memo not to get on Seth's bad books. He laughed in his face the moment he stepped into the Control Room. "This is the funniest shit I've heard in a long time," he cackled. "You got your ass handed to you by a girl. Ha!"

Seth ignored him, but his fingers twitched, needing to kill something. Someone. One Agent offered him a cup of coffee, which he accepted as graciously as his wired mind would allow him. Now he could keep his hands occupied. He called for Jimmy and handed him the hair sample and the beanie hat. "Take this to Forensics. I want the results ASAP," Seth instructed, before turning to his twin brother. "Jey, rerun the surveillance from Vegas on the night."

"Right away, boss."

Hunter walked over, his arms crossed and a frown creasing his features. "Well, this is a mess," he pointed out, giving Seth a meaningful glance.

The blonde-and-black-haired Agent's reply was clipped and cold. "Yes it is. And as you can see, I'm cleaning it up."

"Oh, man. I can't wait to find out who she is," Cody guffawed. "I'm going to give her a fucking medal."

Seth was about to turn around and smash his coffee mug into Cody's face when Roman placed a calming hand on his shoulder. Roman could tell what his colleague was thinking and frankly, he would have done the same thing. But now was not the time. He had bigger things to worry about

Seth thanked Roman with a short nod and returned his focus to Jey. He really was in no mood for anyone's bullshit.

* * *

Lily's Louboutins clicked angrily on the polished floor as she walked, the blonde woman too irate to acknowledge the wary looks everyone was giving her. She slammed the blood sample on the table, startling the Agent sitting there. "Tulip. Get this to Forensics right now."

Nodding, Tulip took off. Nobody dared to test Lily in the foul mood she seemed to be in. She moved seamlessly, professionally, not missing a step. She was a woman on a mission. "Poppy, found anything from the surveillance?"

"Negative. But could you confirm the point where the bullet came at you?"

Lily leaned over Poppy's seat and pointed. "Right there. I'm certain of it. Get this done quickly. I want to know where this guy is from, what he looks like, what time he walked into the MGM, if Dolph Ziggler was his intended target."

From there, she went to Rose's office. Rose, Jasmine, Violet and Petunia were gathered there. Jasmine was first to meet the Englishwoman. "How are you feeling?"

"Like shit," she sighed angrily. "The sooner I get this sorted the better."

"Well, you can't be perfect all the time," said Violet, a hint of malice in her tone, and Lily's fingers curled and uncurled, itching to wrap around the bitch's throat and squeeze. She caught Jasmine's eyes, who gave her a warning shake of the head. Violet was not worth it.

About an hour later, Poppy's head poked through the door. "Lily. We've found something."

* * *

The camera angles were now focused on the elevators of the MGM Arena. All hundred and twenty-seven of them. One by one, the images flickered past uneventfully until something peculiar caught Seth's eye. "Wait!" he barked, making Jey jump. "Go back to one-fifteen."

Jey did as he was told. Seth peered closely at the fuzzy images. It was Ziggler's girlfriend from the night before and she was changing into some black outfit. She was wounded in the arm, but it didn't seem to deter her movements. Seth's eyebrows shot up, intrigued as the woman pulled off what turned out to be a short black wig, revealing long blond hair. She raised her head, and Seth's features creased with suspicion. He paused and zoomed in further on the frame, cleaning the pixels until the image became clear, unmistakable.

The cup Seth was holding slipped from his hands and smashed into a million pieces, causing people nearby to jump away in alarm. Seth took a step back, brown eyes wide, mouth falling open slowly. No way. No fucking way.

Dean and Roman glanced up at the screen, and both did double takes. "Wait a minute!" a horrified Roman choked, "Isn't that..."

"Holy fucking shit," Dean muttered, looking at their friend with wide eyes.

But Seth didn't notice any of their reactions. His brain had completely shut down, his heart pounded hard in his chest. His mouth moved slowly, dumbly, only able to produce three words.

"Oh my God..."

* * *

Lily's pale eyes were wide, her entire being paralyzed by shock as she stared up at the face on the computer screen.

_Oh my God. It can't be_. _It _can't _be!_

Jasmine voiced out the words that were churning in Lily's mind, words she still was unable to believe. "Lily, that's your boyfriend."

Rose stared at Jasmine, confused. Violet choked on the drink in her mouth. "Her _what?_"

Lily trembled. No. Seth worked in advertising. He created slogans for a living. He wasn't a spy. He didn't kill people. He wouldn't even hurt a fly. This had to be a mistake - a _terrible_ mistake. _This can't be happening._

The next words addressed to her told her it was anything but. "Um...Lily, the results of Daisy's autopsy came back." Poppy handed her the papers and pointed at the relevant figures. "We lifted fingerprints from her body and ran it on the system. Seth Rollins was a ninety-nine percent match on every print. Same with the blood sample you brought us."

_Oh God._ The room began to sway. She felt like she was going to faint. Voices swirled around in her head; all talking at once, but all saying the same thing:

_He lied to me. Seth lied to me. He's been lying to me all this time._

She looked up and round at her colleagues, an stunned expression on her beautiful face. Jasmine, Violet, Buttercup and the others were staring at her; some perplexed. Most suspicious.

Her phone rang suddenly, startling her. Lily's stomach lurched when she glanced at the caller ID. Seth never called her during working hours. They only ever exchanged texts. They hadn't spoken to each other in two days. Should she answer it? The blonde woman was torn.

"Answer it," Rose ordered before Lily could make up her mind. Hesitantly, she raised the phone to her ear. "Hello?" Her mouth felt like it was coated with sand.

"Hi." Seth's voice echoed through the phone. No 'Hey beautiful', 'Hey, Lil', or just 'Lily' like he usually said with a playful tone. Just 'Hi'. It was formal. Cold. Something was definitely going on.

She tried to sound casual, her American accent more pronounced than normal. "This is a surprise. You never call me at work."

"Well, I'm trying something new in our relationship," said Seth. A statement like that should have sounded friendlier. "Would you like to come over to my place after work?"

"Why? What's the occasion?" she blurted, and nearly smacked herself for sounding so defensive.

"No occasion. We just haven't spent time together in a while is all."

He sounded so calm. Too calm. This couldn't be the man she just saw on the screen, the man who had given her a run for her money and more, two nights ago. She looked over at Rose, who was communicating to her in sign language; _Say yes. Act normal. Tell him you'll see him at seven, if that's not too early._

"Sure. I'll see you at seven, if that isn't too early."

"Seven is perfect. See you then." And he hung up before Lily could reply. Wow.

"What the hell are you doing?" Jasmine cried. "You can't go over there! Why are you allowing this, Rose?"

"Lily can handle it, Jasmine," Rose said coolly.

"This isn't a game!" the Australian woman countered. "Rollins is highly trained and highly skilled just like us! He could be leading her into a trap."

"She won't be unarmed, will she? If it is a trap then she'll be ready for him. Right, Lily?"

Lily didn't trust herself to speak. She didn't even know how to respond to that. She wasn't concentrating right now. "I have to go."

"Lily," Rose said, waiting for the British woman to look her way. "You know what you have to do, Lily."

She swallowed. "I do."

"I could get Violet to do it if you don't think you're up for it," Rose offered, a bit more kindly this time.

Lily's head snapped up, her expression suddenly cold and dangerous, with the air of a lioness protecting her young. "No need. I'll handle this myself."

"You sure, Blondie?" Violet asked, jumping at the chance to make Little Miss Perfect suffer even more. "I won't have a problem taking out your little boyfriend."

Lily's gray eyes narrowed menacingly at the tattooed woman. She would rip Violet apart if she ever touched Seth. She grabbed her jacket. She couldn't be at work, not right now, not with the way her mind was racing.

Jasmine followed, concerned for her friend. "You don't have to do this, Lily. Let Violet do it."

"I have to, Jazz. I caused this problem and I have to solve it. I've compromised the Company-"

Jasmine stopped her, looking into her eyes. "Fuck that! This is your _boyfriend_." She knew how much Lily liked Seth and was saddened by this turn of events.

Lily felt a chill sweep over her. She still couldn't believe what was going on. "Jasmine...I don't know who that man is anymore."

* * *

"I cannot believe this."

Roman watched Seth pace back and forth. "Seth...dude, stop. You're too tense right now. Are you sure you want to see her given what you've found out?"

Seth had been asking himself that question ever since the DNA results had Lily at a perfect match. "I don't know, Roman," he admitted, running a hand through his hair. "I don't know. But I have to...I just can't believe it's her."

"Whatever you do, be careful. Obviously this isn't her first dance," Dean warned, playing with the tip of his blade in his hands. "Just make sure you're armed."

Armed. To hurt his Lily. The thought sickened him.

"Well, isn't this a dilemma?"

The three turned to see Randy Orton leaning against the door frame, his arms and ankles crossed. Seth gave Roman a look that clearly stated, _Get that motherfucker out of here before I rearrange his face. _"Now's not the time, Orton," Roman began.

"Actually, now's perfect," the older agent scowled. "Don't mind if I interrupt your little clique meeting over here. Something tells me you three probably knew all about this girl all along. You all knew who she was and neither of you, Roman or Dean, said anything. I just want to know why you're protecting Seth's selfish interests."

"Oh really?" Dean challenged.

"Yeah, really," Orton retorted, taking a step into the room. Seth noticed Dean's grip on his knife tighten, as did Orton, who raised a challenging eyebrow at the other man.

Roman moved surreptitiously in front of Dean before any blood could be shed, and folded his massive arms. "None of us knew about her, Orton," he stated, , his grey gaze unwavering. "We all found out about her the same time as you did."

Tilting his head to the side, Orton watched all three of them, greatly resembling an animal observing its prey, waiting to strike. "Okay then. If you say so. With that settled, I'd like to offer Seth my assistance." His smile was just as predatory. "Especially if he feels he's not in the right...state of mind. Because he knows what he's got to do now, don't you, Rollins?"

Roman looked at the other man like he'd lost his mind. Dean just looked like he wanted to hurt him. Seth merely smiled tightly and walked past him to leave. "Thank you, Randy, but I'm fine. I'll take care of it."

Orton narrowed his eyes. "Really?" His tone was taunting, mocking. "Are you sure you don't want me to-"

"_I said_," Seth barked, rounding on his colleague, and the look in his eyes was enough to make even Orton back down a little. "I'll take care of it."

When Orton finally left them alone, and Seth cast a glance at Roman and Dean. They could see he was still shaken, still in disbelief. "I gotta go," he murmured. He couldn't stay here but he didn't want to go home either. He felt so lost right now. This felt like a bad dream.

"Good luck, man," Roman said sincerely, patting his shoulder.

Boy, was he going to need it.

* * *

_**Thoughts?**_


	16. Out For Blood

_**Hugs, handshakes and kisses to **__Maashmellow, ladyjade37, TajiaK__, __Alexis Black-Reigns__** and **__nikki1335__** for reviewing!**_

_**Loved writing this chapter. Enjoy!**_

* * *

The frantic pacing continued at Seth's apartment. By the time seven p.m. rolled around, he was going insane from the million-and-one thoughts swirling inside his brain. He was on the verge of a meltdown of epic proportions. This felt like a bad dream, a terrible nightmare he desperately wanted to wake up from. But this was real, and this was happening. And there was evidence to back it all up.

Lily wasn't who she claimed to be all these months. She wasn't an event planner. She was a spy. An assassin, just like him. The thought of his girlfriend taking a life on a regular basis – like he did – made his blood run cold. And if he was to judge from their encounter at the MGM Arena, she wasn't some bright-eyed, bushy-tailed rookie embarking on her first assignment. She was a seasoned, highly skilled expert. Seth never felt that he knew Lily very well. There was always an air of ambiguity about her, a mystique that he nonetheless found appealing and more importantly, harmless. This recent discovery threw him all the way off. Lily was dangerous, and if she had also found out about him, there wasn't a shred of doubt in Seth's mind that she would be gunning for him. And she would expect the same from him. Because that was how they were all trained. If you got a target, you eliminate the target. Show no mercy, even if the target meant something to you.

Even if the target meant _everything_ to you.

The knock on the door startled him. His head whipped towards the sound, his body tensing instantly. He forced himself to take a deep breath and clear his mind. He needed to calm down, needed to handle this rationally.

But could he ever regard this unexpected turn of events with a rational train of thought? How did one wrap their head around the fact that the best thing that ever happened to you was based on nothing but a lie?

He walked over and opened the door, and for a moment his breath was taken away. Lily looked stunning as always, but Seth managed to compose himself. For all he cared, this was a distraction. Everything she did in the entire duration of their relationship was probably nothing but one distraction after the other.

"Lily. Perfect timing." He smiled coolly at her, keeping his suspicions from the forefront. His dark eyes slid up and down her curves, scanning for clues. She was wearing a long-sleeved top, obviously to cover up the bullet wound he expected to find on her left arm. Seth took a good look at Lily, _really looked_ at Lily, for the first time since they first met.

The blond woman smiled. "Well, are you going to let me in?" she asked.

"Of course." He finally stepped aside for her. They would have kissed. They always kissed. But Lily couldn't bear to even touch him right now. She walked past him and entered the apartment. Grey eyes immediately began scrutinizing the place, looking left and right. She walked a little slowly, never fully turning her back on Seth. She noticed he was wearing a black turtleneck shirt. Covering up the neck she'd left scratch marks on. She still needed to see for herself, but not yet. She would feel him out, observe his reactions, though the tension between them should have been enough to confirm her fears.

With narrowed eyes, Seth watched Lily's movements. How he hadn't seen it before, he never knew. There was a smooth, elegant precision about her that was always there, but it seemed more pronounced now that he knew what he knew. He had to bide his time; not make any silly mistakes if he was going to get down to the bottom of this.

Lily began to shrug off her jacket when Seth approached her from behind. "Here, let me."

It was a normal routine between them, but Lily still stiffened when he put his hands on her and slipped off her jacket. Seth hung it on the wall and let his hands smoothly, subtly, frisk the clothing item. He felt nothing. If she had indeed brought a weapon, it would be on her person. Seth knew more than ever that he had to be careful. "Did you do something new with your hair?" he asked, attempting to make conversation. "It looks different."

"Yeah. I used shampoo and a hair dryer," Lily replied dryly.

"Right." Could this be any more awkward?

Lily glanced at the dinner table. There was a candle and a red rose in the middle of the white tablecloth, and a bottle of champagne inside a silver ice bucket. The setting would have been romantic if she didn't think it was a set-up. "You did all this for me?"

"Yeah." He gave her a long look. "I missed you." Technically, that was true; twice at the MGM Arena.

"I missed you too." Missed the chance to break his neck, more like.

He held out the chair for her to sit. Lily tensed when he stood behind her, keeping her eyes on him as he moved towards the kitchen. He took the food out of the microwave. "I made dinner. Hope you're hungry," he announced, returning with two plates, one of which he placed in front of her. Lily eyed it warily, then fixed a smile on her face when she looked back up at him. "It smells delicious," she commented. She wasn't touching the food with a ten foot pole. It was probably poisoned.

Seth noticed her hesitation. She never turned down his food before. His doubts were slowly being cleared, but he remained calm. He placed a bowl of salad on the table, along with a small basket of breadsticks before taking his seat across from her. "So, it's been a while, babe," Seth began, "how has work been?"

"Ah, ya know." Lily shrugged, picking up a fork. Seth watched her every move, and was suddenly brought back to their first morning together; the way she'd handled that knife as she cut up the apple.

"Hectic, as usual," Lily was saying. "However, there was a little problem at one of the locations for this party we're throwing."

"What sort of problem?"

"A double booking with another consultant."

"Really?" Seth tucked into his salad. "Were you able to sort it out?"

"Not yet. The other consultant won't budge. But not to worry. It's nothing we can't handle." Lily did not take her eyes off her lover. Well, soon to be ex-lover. "So what about you?"

"Good. It's been good. We had a problem with some figures. They weren't adding up." He clutched his knife particularly tightly. Lily noticed, her eyes flicking briefly to his grip as she took a sip of water. "Sounds intriguing. Did you fix the problem?"

"No, not yet. We're still working on it. We'll get it done eventually. We always do."

They locked eyes.

Seth pointed at her plate. "You're not eating."

"Sorry," she sighed. "I'm not very hungry."

"Maybe some champagne, then." He popped open the bottle then moved to her side of the table. Again, she tensed. Seth poured some of the wine into her glass. He started to walk around her back to his seat. He couldn't stall any longer. He needed to see for himself. Without warning, he swung the bottle at her head.

Seth moved fast, but Lily was just as quick. She shot out of her chair and caught Seth's arm, the champagne bottle inches from her face. She stared at the bottle, then over at him with wide, shocked eyes. Shocked brown eyes stared back. He had never seen her move that fast before. A mental tug of war ensued between the two, each refusing to budge, until Lily used her free hand to grab Seth's shirt, forcefully pulling down his collar.

Scratch marks. On both sides of the neck. _Oh God_.

Pushing her off him, Seth seized her left sleeve and yanked hard, ripping it. A white patch covered what he was sure was a bullet wound. Their heads snapped towards the other, expressions like deer caught in the headlights. The tension had reached boiling point. Seth advanced. "Lily..."

Lily edged back with each move Seth made forward. They moved cautiously, eyes locked; expressions apprehensive; both wanting to make the first move but neither wanting to make the first mistake. Then Lily turned, running towards the door just as Seth lunged. He tackled her to the ground, then straddled her and pinned her hands over her head. She screamed maniacally.

"Can we talk about this for a second?" he tried to reason with her, "Stop it, Lily! Calm down!"

"Get yer bloody hands off me!" Lily shrieked, "Get off!"

Seth froze, his eyes wide with surprise. Her accent. It was...different. British. Jesus, was there anything real about this woman?

Taking advantage of his hesitation, Lily drove her thigh between his legs. As Seth groaned with pain, she lifted the edge of her hand and brought it down hard against his neck in a karate chop. The move was effective, as Seth dropped to the floor, all the breath in his body forced out of him. Scrambling to her feet, Lily raked her disheveled hair over her eyes and glanced down at his prone body. Her eyes were a mercury fire as she pulled out a small circular device from inside her right boot and tossed it to the ground before throwing open the door. She slammed it shut and broke off the lock, trapping Seth inside.

Coughing, willing air back into his system, Seth managed to lift himself onto his knees. He turned his head slowly, catching sight of the contraption on the floor, and instantly froze.

Red numbers blinked at him like a digital clock alarm, each more ominous than the last;

_25...24...23..._

The adrenaline that rushed into Seth almost dazed him. He shot to his feet and rushed to the door, yanking on the handle. "Shit!" he cried out, rattling the door harder, but his efforts were futile. He spun away, his mind racing, and then remembered the air vent in the bottom corner beside the kitchen sink which led him straight to the garage. Creating that route had been a good idea after all.

Racing across the garage, he jumped into his SUV and sped out of the building into the night. The impact of the explosion caused Seth to nearly swerve off the road. Though he was well-versed on coping under pressure, he'd never moved so fast, so frantically in his life.

When he was sure he had driven to a safe distance, he spun the car around and parked, climbing out to watch the destruction of the place he used to call home. As the flames rose higher, licking everything in its path, Seth felt a transformation, a fire of his own, inside of him, and the shock and disbelief slowly burned away to pure, unadulterated rage.

She blew up his house. She nearly killed him. He was impressed. The blatant attempt on his life clearly told him she'd thrown down a gauntlet. But Lily had picked with the wrong assassin to fuck with. This wasn't about honoring The Code anymore. It was more than that now. Now, only one thing ran through Seth Rollins' mind.

War.

* * *

Jasmine's eyebrows nearly reached her hairline as she took in Lily's disheveled appearance. "Lily...what the hell happened?" asked the redhead.

"He attacked me," Lily whispered calmly, dispassionately, striding into Jasmine's house. The shock of what had happened at Seth's apartment had melted into numbness. "He _fucking_ attacked me."

The Australian woman's shoulder's sagged. "Lily...I'm sorry."

"Yeah, so am I. But not as sorry as _he_'ll be." Lily looked over at her redheaded friend, her silver gaze hard as stone. Emotional. Impassioned. Clamoring for blood.

The blood of Seth Rollins.

* * *

_**Kindly review! :D**_


	17. Bridge Over Troubled Water

_**Big, big hugs to **__Maashmellow__, __CheekyClaudine__** and **__TajiaK__** for reviewing!**_

* * *

Roman stared at the man sitting across his breakfast table. "This whole thing is fucking crazy, you know that, right?" he remarked. "I mean, what are the chances of shit like this happening?"

Seth idly stirred his glass of Scotch, rotating it with his wrist. "Well, it's happened. Whoop-dee-fucking-doo," he replied listlessly.

"So...what? Was she doing this from the start? Did she always know who you are?" Inspecting the firearms lined up on the table, Roman picked up the AK-47 and began cleaning it.

Seth could hear the question beneath the question; how on earth did one of The Authority's best men fail to detect a rival from right under his nose for this long? He didn't even want to find out the answer. He felt like a blind man that had miraculously recovered his sight but hated what he was seeing. He almost wished he was blind again. Truly, ignorance was bliss. "I cannot fucking believe that woman," he lamented, his hair swinging limply around him as he shook his head.

"How do you think she kept this from you for this long?" Roman questioned, "You two have been together for what? Six, seven months?"

"Eight this Thursday." Seth gazed blankly at his drink. "I can't believe she's been lying to me all this time."

Roman raised an eyebrow in amusement. "You haven't exactly been playing straight yourself, have you now?"

"That's completely different!" the black and blond-haired man defended hotly, the first real sign of life he'd displayed since stumbling through Roman's door a few hours before. "I dated her because I actually liked her. I thought she was the only sane thing in my life, the only normal thing I had going for me. And now it's all gone to shit."

The Samoan took in his friend's morose expression. He was hurting, and hurting bad. "Go to bed, Seth. You're upset. Sleep on this. I'll set up the guest room-"

"_Upset?_" Seth shot, face reddened with anger, nostrils flaring. "My girlfriend just tried to kill me! Of course I'm upset."

With a shrug, Roman retorted flippantly, "Well, you nearly bashed her brains in with a champagne bottle. Of course she was going to react."

"No, Roman, she brought that C4 into my house," Seth reminded him. "That means she planned to blow me up regardless." He leaned back in his seat and cursed loudly at the ceiling.

"Look, Seth, I know what it looks like, but trust me when I say that Lily is probably just as upset and confused are you are right now. She's vulnerable, hurt-"

Seth gaped at his colleague, lifting his hands in exasperation. "Dude, whose side are you on?"

"Yours. Always. But I still think you need to sleep on this."

Shaking his head, Seth said, "You don't get it, Roman. Lily ID'd me. On a hit. You know what that means."

Roman's expression slowly darkened. He did. The black and blond-haired man nodded. "Exactly."

Both men exhaled deeply, their shoulders slumping. Seth leaned forwards and placed his hands on his head. He was in fifty shades of agony right now.

"So...what are you gonna do?" Roman broke the silence. "How are you going to find her?"

"Easily," said Seth. "Remember that tracking device Orton used to tab the Eva Marie girl?" Roman nodded. "Well, he gave me one, and I happened to have it on me when Lily showed up at my place." He recalled the moment he took down Lily; how he'd slipped the device seamlessly into her golden locks as they struggled on the ground. He had known she was going to make a run for it, and was disheartened that she had proved him right.

"So you know where she is right now?" said Roman.

Seth lifted his butt off the chair to retrieve an object resembling an iPad Mini from his back pocket. He Held it up and double-tapped the red dot that came up on the screen. The dot zoomed in and settled on a sole location on the map. "She's in a house about three miles away from here," he confirmed, showing it to the bigger man. "Probably a friend's."

"Or a fellow hitter. Surely there's more of her running around," Roman pointed out. Silence fell as both men considered the plausibility of that theory.

"Then we'll need reinforcements," said Seth. They couldn't rule out that option. "Get Dean and Cody in. Tell them to get suited up. We roll out in the morning." Getting to his feet, Seth grabbed the newly polished AK-47 off the table. "I'm going to need this."

"But I just got it cleaned," Roman whined.

* * *

It was well past midnight. Lily had been at Jasmine's home for several hours now. She hadn't slept. She couldn't sleep. She waited for morning to come so she could begin proper target acquisition. There wasn't much she could do right now, but she would still try.

Propping up Jasmine's laptop on the coffee table in front of her, she scoured the database again. She found nothing. Again. All she had - all F.L.O.R.A. had - was the evidence gathered from the Ziggler assignment. Seth Rollins was practically a ghost. Then she suddenly realized where the problem lay. It was possible she did not know her boyfriend's real name.

Frustrated, she shut the laptop and lay down on the bed. She stared blankly at the ceiling, her mind whirring like overworked clockwork. She needed to find out more about Seth Rollins. All the other evidence she would have collected had been reduced to ashes. Suddenly, blowing up Seth's apartment looked like a rash decision on her part. Then again, she never really thought things through when it came to Seth. His spontaneity must have rubbed off on her. It was one of his most attractive qualities, after all; that, and his weirdly lovable, two-toned locks, eyes the color of her favorite chocolate, lips she could kiss for the rest of her life...

Lily swore under her breath and shoved the pillow over her face. She tossed and turned the rest of the night.

* * *

Morning came, and she returned home, half expecting it to have been razed in retaliation. Shockingly, it wasn't. Either Seth hadn't come this way at all or he was still biding his time. She was going to have to crank up the electricity on the fences.

Petunia and Violet had stopped by to assist Lily and Jasmine. They scoured the house for any possible bugs Seth may have planted there. Lily brought out every present or gift he'd ever given her and passed some to Jasmine. "Check these," she instructed. She held up the stuffed bunny rabbit Seth had won for her at the fair. A small smile formed on her lips. That was one date she would never forget. It was the day she discovered her true feelings for Seth. What she wouldn't give to turn back time, to go back to the times where there were no secrets, no lies, no deceit.

"Are you having second thoughts?" Jasmine quietly walked over to her.

Lily looked up, quickly masking the wistful expression on her face. "I'm just checking the personal effects."

"Find anything...personal?"

Lily did not want to know what Jasmine was getting at. "No leads," she replied coolly. "If there are any, the mark covered his tracks very well." She took her phone and started scrolling through all the pictures she took with Seth. Looked for clues.

"The 'mark'? He's your boyfriend, Lily."

"I told you; I don't know who he is anymore!" The blonde woman caught herself as her voice rose. Composed herself. "Seth is a security risk. He knows me, knows who I am. He's compromised us all."

"Are you sure?" Jasmine questioned, "Are you sure _you_ aren't compromising everyone right now?"

Lily opened her mouth, about to defend herself. But there is no easy answer this time. Instead, she squared her shoulders and reached for a large black trash bag, tossing the items into it.

"You're not the first girl in the world to find out her life is a lie, you know." Jasmine's voice had reverted to the soft, understanding tone that Lily was growing to hate. She didn't need anybody's pity, not even Jasmine's. Lily turned around slowly, grey eyes meeting hazel ones.

"Yeah, but it was _my_ lie." She bagged the items with considerably more force now. The redhead said nothing, just watched her warily. "We need these analyzed. Get Poppy and Tulip to head to HQ right now."

The four women got into Jasmine's car and they headed off towards their destination. They drove along a bridge overlooking the river below, and Lily stared vacantly at the shimmering water, needing more than ever to be awoken from this nightmare.

"Lily, what's that?" Jasmine's voice cut into her thoughts. The blonde woman turned her head towards the driver's seat. "What's what?"

"There's something in your hair," the redhead said curiously. "Petunia, check that, will you?"

Petunia leaned across the passenger seat and raked the back of Lily's tresses, retrieving a small object from it. Lily was stunned.

"Hold up," Violet exclaimed, leaning forward for a closer look. "Is that..."

They watched the object as the red light's blinks increased in speed, and realization hit them all.

"Look out!" Petunia suddenly screamed. Lily's head whipped forwards, and her eyes widened as an SUV came at them at full speed. Jasmine gasped and turned the steering wheel with all her might. She managed to swerve and narrowly avoid the other vehicle. When the car was steady, she slammed her leg down on the accelerator, taking off down the bridge.

"What the _fuck _was that?" Violet yelled, looking behind her frantically.

Through the side mirror, Lily saw the SUV make a sharp one-eighty and race towards them. A familiar tuft of black and blond hair emerged from the passenger's side, the piece of steel he pointed at the women glinting in the sunlight.

Seth.

"Shit, he's armed!" Petunia shouted just as Seth started shooting. She wasted no time withdrawing her own guns. Poking her head out of her window, she opened fire.

"Petunia, no!" Lily screamed. Seth was in that SUV. But to her dismay, Violet had joined the Hispanic woman, firing shots at the SUV. Looking closer, she saw that there were two other men inside the chasing vehicle alongside Seth, all heavily armed. She couldn't see their faces, but Seth's hair was unmistakable. All of them outgunned the women considerably with their AKs and Remingtons, while they only had handguns in their possession. Left with no choice but to help, Lily drew out her own firearm and leaned out of the car. It was chaos, bullets flying back and forth, tires screeching as each vehicle tried to avoid the other.

"Aim for the tires!" Violet yelled. They did as told, but the SUV swerved skillfully out of reach. As the SUV gained on them, the assailants increased their firepower. Lily winced as a bullet whizzed by her ear, and she ducked back into the car. "Jasmine, we have to go underwater!" she shouted.

"What?" Jasmine's eyes briefly left the road to gape at the blond woman. "Are you crazy?" she yelled, ducking instinctively as the windshield exploded in front of them, glass raining on the two women.

"We don't have a choice!" Lily yelled back. If they got their tires shot, it could lead to a bad, probably fatal accident.

"The water isn't deep! We could turn into fucking pancakes!"

"We'll survive it!" Petunia said, "Unbuckle your seatbelt and jump out before the car hits the surface!"

They were nearing the end of the bridge. Bullets were still coming at them. "Now, Jazz!"

Jasmine yanked the steering wheel to the right, sending the car through the bridge's barrier. The vehicle seemed to move in slow motion as it plummeted down. Lily, Jasmine, Petunia and Violet managed to escape from the car and dived into the cold water.

"Think they're dead?" Dean wondered, squinting as he peered down at the water below.

Cody reloaded his Remington. "Only one way to find out," he muttered, and leaning over the barrier, he began shooting at the spot where the women had disappeared.

"Hey! _Hey!_ Hold your fire!" Seth ordered, shoving the young agent, his words surprising the other three men. Cody glared at him, clearly considering whether to disobey the order. At Seth's threatening glance, he lowered his weapon grudgingly.

"They're not dead," Seth clarified, "They're made of stronger stuff. But I know where they're going next."

"And how do you know this?" Roman asked, curiosity in his and Dean's expressions, suspicion in Cody's.

Seth looked round at them, a triumphant smirk on his face. "Let's just say that Emma and the Uso twins need their salaries upped..."

* * *

_**So what did you think?**_


	18. Heartbroken

_**Special shout-out to **__TajiaK__, __nikki1335__, __Maashmellow__** and **__Alexis Black-Reigns__** for the reviews!**_

* * *

The other F.L.O.R.A. agents stared open-mouthed when the four drenched, disheveled women stormed into HQ, but no one dared ask questions. The four went straight to work, barking orders. "Okay, people, listen up!" announced Lily. "Target acquisition is our priority now. The mark is a code-blue liability to the organization and we need to track him now. Everyone else should stop whatever they're doing and get on it!"

Jasmine handed her car's GPS to Tulip. "It got into water but I'm sure you can work around it. Retrieve the images it was able to take during the car chase; license plate of the vehicle, the accomplices' faces. I'm sure they're all in there. Find them and put them up. Pansy! Find a change of clothes for us."

The four women stripped and changed right then and there in the middle of the Command Center. Petunia turned to Lily. "I'm going back outside to patrol the perimeter, make sure we weren't followed." And she disappeared.

Lily gave her phone to Poppy. "Put a bug on my phone. Something tells the mark might try and call me, to gloat if anything." They were dead. Seth and his cronies. That was a promise. She would start with his friends, kill them off one by one in front of Seth. Then, once she got her hands on him, Lily was going to torture him, play around with him before killing him. No way was he going to die quickly. It would be too easy. Too merciful.

Sure enough, Seth called, and Lily put the phone on speaker. "You bastard!" she snarled, "You tried to kill me!"

Seth's voice rang all around the vast room. "I was only returning the favor, sweet cheeks. And last time I checked, you were American."

She watched Poppy's tracking system come to life. "Sorry about that," she replied, not sounding sorry at all. "Comes with the job."

"Does 'lying bitch' come with the job as well?"

She leaned forwards, gripping the edges of the table so hard her knuckles turned white. "You better watch your mouth, Rollins."

"Hmm, you didn't have a problem with my mouth all them times I ate you out."

Lily's eyes widened and her face flushed with embarrassment. The other girls turned away awkwardly, looking anywhere but at the blonde woman. "You think this is funny?" she hissed at him.

The brown and blond-haired man didn't miss a beat. "Comical, actually."

"Lily," Poppy mouthed, looking panicked, "we can't trace it!"

"Keep trying," Rose mouthed back beside Lily.

"Oh, tell your girl not to bother. This call is untraceable."

Fucking bastard. "Give it up, Seth," Lily said firmly. "I'm done playing games. We'll find you sooner or later."

"Keep telling yourself that, sweetheart. And speaking off eating out," Seth continued, "How about we have dinner? Go on a proper date again; sort this little mess out between ourselves."

The British woman's lip curled with disgust. "I'd rather gouge my eyes out."

Seth laughed mirthlessly, mockingly. "That can be arranged. But I strongly suggest you take my offer."

"And if I don't?" Lily sneered.

"I'm glad you asked. Look out the window. And feel free to invite your friends to view the show."

Lily exchanged glances with Rose before moving to the ceiling-to-floor window. The gasps from her colleagues told her it was grim. And it was.

A severely beaten Petunia stood helplessly on the roof of the building across from them. A noose was tied around her neck, with the other end hanging off the top of a crane. Seth was nowhere to be seen. "Now, I'm not sure whether to blow her brains out, or just hang her off this ledge," he pondered, as if he was trying to decide what to have for lunch.

Lily's blood began to boil. "Let her go, Seth," she said as calmly as she could.

"I think hanging. Less messy," Seth went on. "All I need to do is press this button. The crane will drag her off the ledge and leave her suspended in midair. Her neck will snap before you even get to her."

"What do you want?" Her mind was screaming, _Shit! He knows F.L.O.R.A.'s location! Get everyone out of here now!_

"Dinner," he reiterated coldly. "Tonight. Seven. The place where we had our first date. If anyone follows you I'll know, and I'll kill them without blinking. So you better keep your bitches on a leash."

"Fine. Dinner at seven. Now let her go."

"Now that wasn't so hard, was it? See you at seven. If you make it out alive, that is." He hung up.

And then, they heard the timer.

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.

Rose flew forwards and keyed in a command on the nearest keyboard, and the computer stations immediately began to erase drives. "Everyone evacuate! Move!" she screamed, and the other agents scattered, making their escape in different directions. "Someone get Petunia down from there!"

Jasmine grabbed a dumbstruck Lily by the arm. "Come on, Lily, let's go. _Come on_!" she snapped when the blonde woman hadn't moved, tugging her towards the private exit door.

They had barely made it to safety when the explosion nearly threw them off their feet. The earth shook from the impact, debris littering the ground outside. They took cover in the safety of the ground floor and waited for the sky to stop falling. Slowly, people rose to their feet, coughing out the unhealthy fumes they'd inhaled. "Did everyone make it out?" Rose asked around, her usually strong voice wavering a little.

"I think so," someone said, but Lily wasn't listening. She pulled herself up and stalked towards the nearest bathroom. She walked calmly, stoically, staring straight ahead. She quietly locked the door behind her and turned around.

And right then and there, she finally snapped.

Screaming wildly, she flew into a rage, kicking, punching and throwing things. She pulled at her hair and swore and raged and ranted, her shrill voice echoing around the enclosure as all the frustrations of the past week came pouring out in wave after agonizing wave.

A hand came down on her shoulder and she instinctively spun around, her fist flying with an angry growl. Jasmine caught it easily. "Easy, girl." She lowered the hand and met her friend's wild eyes.

The sound of her voice broke Lily out of her trance. The blonde stopped and blinked slowly, dumbly, at the redhead, her breaths tearing in and out of her lungs, the red mist slowly clearing from her line of vision. She would have asked how Jasmine had got in, but remembered vaguely that every F.L.O.R.A. agent was an expert locksmith. Lily was too worn out to be embarrassed. Plus, Jasmine was the only one who had ever seen her like this, the only one allowed to.

Jasmine scrutinized the area. The bathroom was a mess. Lily had taken out a mirror and all six toilet doors were dented. Jasmine frowned at her colleague's bleeding hand. "Jesus Christ, Lily," she grumbled. "Sit." She guided her onto the top of the marble sink, then grabbed some tissues and worked on cleaning the blood. Lily just sat there lifelessly. She hadn't even felt the pain of smashing the mirror or seen the blood. She couldn't feel anything anymore, except for the aching hole where her heart was meant to be. It must have dropped down to join her stomach in the void.

Jasmine finished cleaning the wounds and tossed the towels into the trash. When she was done, she pulled Lily into a hug. The British woman was too drained, physically and emotionally, to struggle. Tears sprang to her grey eyes. "I can't do this, Jasmine. I can't kill him."

Jasmine pulled back and gazed at her. "I understand what you're going through Lily, more than you think. But you've got to put your feelings for Seth aside. He showed this morning that he won't hesitate to take you out the moment he sees you."

She knew that, and it was all too apparent now that Seth wasn't the man she thought he was. But then again, after everything that had happened, everything she discovered, he never was. And it hurt.

Jasmine frowned as her friend's shoulders sagged. "Hey. _Hey!_ Look at me." Jasmine shook her, waiting for the blonde woman to meet her eyes. "You _have_ to do this. You don't have a choice."

Taking a deep breath, Lily nodded once. She understood. Pulling away from the Australian, she composed herself and walked towards the exit. "Where are you going?" Jasmine stared after her.

"Home." She sounded like a F.L.O.R.A. agent again. "I've got a date to get ready for."

* * *

Roman and Dean sat in silence as Seth kicked and screamed and flung random things left and right, swearing at the top of his lungs. They had been waiting for this moment and they were not going to stop it. He needed to let it all out, cleanse himself of all the pent-up frustration. They said nothing when he was done and he dropped into the seat beside Roman and lowered his head. They weren't going to say a word until their friend was ready to.

Seth's hands raked through his hair. "This is so fucked up," he whispered.

"I know." Roman watched him sympathetically. His friend's heart was broken.

"That's my fucking girlfriend." Was that a sob?

Dean shook his head. "_Was_, Seth," he reminded him, all too aware of how heartless he must sound. But it had to be said. "Don't forget that. After what happened this morning, you think if she sees you right now she's not going to put a bullet in your head?"

"I'm sorry Seth, but Dean's right," said Roman. "She tried to kill you. She crossed the line."

Roman was right. They both were. Placing his forearms on his thighs, Seth shook his head slowly, staring without seeing anything. This feeling of helplessness was so foreign to him.

"Gentlemen."

Seth, Roman and Dean looked up at the sound of the voice. "Hunter."

Hunter kept his firm gaze on the brown and blond-haired agent. "Mr. Ambrose, Mr. Reigns, give us a minute, please," he said in his characteristic calm tone.

Nodding, Dean patted Seth's shoulder and left, followed closely by Roman. When they were alone, Hunter pulled up a chair and sat in front of Seth. A round of uncomfortable silence passed before the Boss spoke quietly. "You know, Seth...you're not the only one who's been compromised by a loved one before."

"Really? Pray tell," Seth's tone dripped with sarcasm.

"I will." A wry smile crept onto Hunter's face. "There was someone in my life once."

Seth was shocked. "_You?_ Really?"

Hunter's smile widened. "Don't sound so surprised. I may not act that way now, but I had feelings once upon a time. And this woman...I loved her. But we worked together and I couldn't pursue a relationship while we remained colleagues. I had aspirations of being Director then, but I was ready to give it all up for her, until she decided to be with another man. She was assigned to kill him, but she didn't. Hid him away and then tried to run."

"What happened to them?"

"What was always going to happen to them," said Hunter. "The Authority found them, executed him in front of her and tossed her into the Hudson, I was told. It hurt me, more than anything in this world. But there was nothing I could do. She broke the Code, compromised the Company. She knew her fate the moment she decided not to pull that trigger." Hunter leveled Seth with a firm look. "It sounds like this Lily girl is going to make you suffer the same."

Sighing heavily, Seth ran a hand over his face. "You know I'm not like this, Hunter. I go about my jobs without batting an eyelid. But...it's just so much more personal this time. I'm sorry."

"I understand." Hunter smiled wryly, watching the younger man for several long seconds. "You know, there's a technique I learned when I was still in Tibet. It cleanses your mind and centers you, brings your focus back all in one simple step. It will help you. Do you mind if I use it on you?" The skepticism was clear in Seth's expression. "Trust me," Hunter reassured.

Seth continued to stare at him until he expelled another resigned breath, finally doing as he was asked.

Hunter leaned forwards and touched his thumbs to Seth's temples, massaging in slow circles. "I understand you're conflicted," he began in an eerily calm, soothing voice. "Having someone you care about betray you in this manner will always be painful, will always hurt and make you question everything about yourself, like you are doing now. But we are The Authority. We never question ourselves. Ever. It goes against everything we stand for, goes against our sacred Code."

The pressure on Seth's temples increased a little, the circles transitioning to up-and-down motions. "Lily has made you question yourself and that automatically makes her a threat. To you. To all of us. She is a trained killer - skilled, sophisticated, just like you. She has made an attempt on your life before, and she will not hesitate to do it again if she is given the chance. But you will stop her. Because you are stronger than she is, smarter than she is..._better_ than she is."

Hunter was right in his ear now, his voice deeper, fiercer. "Tonight, Seth Rollins, you have one mission, and it is non-negotiable. Tonight, you will meet with Lily...and you will show no hesitation whenyou take her out. She is a problem and you will eliminate that problem. Do you understand?"

Lowering his hands, Hunter reclined and waited for Seth's eyes to open. And when they met his own, the transformation was crystal-clear. His expression was harder than steel, his dark gaze colder than polished sapphire. It was the look of a changed man; more focused, more emotionless. More lethal.

"I understand."


	19. One on One

_**The Shield's match last night though! Best match at Extreme Rules, hands down. Rollins is King. If you haven't seen it, go find it!**_

_**Thank you to **__Maashmellow__, __TajiaK__** and **__CheekyClaudine __**for reviewing the last chapter!**_

* * *

"Your table is waiting, Mr. Rollins. We have left a complementary bottle of our finest champagne for you."

"Thank you, Byron."

The maitre d' smiled warmly. "Closed another deal, sir?"

Seth's voice was flat as he walked into Pearl Garden. "Yes. I did."

He took his seat in the far corner of the restaurant, the exact same table where he and Lily had their first date, and stared at the very-much-in-love couples. He thought he had that, not too long ago. Now it was nothing but a pathetic illusion. This was why he didn't believe in happy endings. They were merely stories that weren't finished yet.

Lily was still alive. He could sense it in his bones. He knew she would come. And when she did...well, let's say tonight's events were not going to be pretty.

Seth picked up his phone and dialed a number. There was one person he always wanted to call, but had been too..._occupied_...to do so. He had to speak to her, even if it was just for one last time.

She picked up after three rings. "Hello?"

"Hello, Stephanie."

"Seth. It's been a while." The surprise was evident in her tone. Unfortunately, this was not the time for chitchat. "Remember Lily, my girlfriend?"

"Yeah. Am I finally going to meet her?"

"No," Seth replied, his chest tightening a little. He took a deep breath. "She's a rival, Stephanie. And I've been assigned to take her out."

Stephanie was unable to say anything for several seconds. "What?"

"I'm meeting with her right now. After tonight, one of us will be dead. Just in case it's me...I just wanted to thank you. For everything." Shit. He was getting emotional, but rightly so. He needed to let Stephanie know that he cared about her. He always saw her as the mother figure he had been deprived of. He needed to say this to her in case he would never get the chance to.

"Seth-"

"Goodbye, Stephanie." And he hung up the phone. Now, all he had to do was wait.

Dean had spoken to him earlier, and his words resonated in his head:

_"You gotta do this, my friend. You don't have a choice. You can take the weekend off and mourn or whatever afterwards, but get it done. Remember; she's not your girlfriend anymore. She's the enemy now."_

Nearly fifteen minutes passed when Lily sauntered into the restaurant, and Seth couldn't stop himself from staring. She was wearing a dress he bought her a while ago, and just as he'd imagined, she looked incredible. He shook his head immediately, banishing the thoughts._ She's the enemy now._

He got to his feet when she neared the table. "Lily."

"Seth." She slipped past him and sat without waiting for him to help her. Seth smirked, amused. "What? No hug or kiss?"

Her smile was just as condescending. "You're never going to touch me again."

Seth sat back down. "We'll see."

The waiter appeared to take their orders, attending to Lily first. Using the distraction, Seth grabbed a napkin, and in one seamless move, pulled a Glock from inside his jacket and wedged it under the table. He smiled as the waiter took his own order, and faced Lily again when he was gone. "Hands on the table."

Lily hesitated. "You first."

"Together."

They looked at each other, then simultaneously, they spread their fingers on the top of the table. "I'm unarmed."

"So am I." Lily made a show of being irritated. "Are we done?"

Seth poured himself some champagne. "We need to talk."

"There's nothing to talk about."

"Yes there is, sweetheart."

Lily leaned forwards on the table, eyes narrowed to slits. "Don't call me that. You tried to kill me. Twice. Give me one reason I shouldn't reach over right now and tear out your throat."

"I should be asking you the same thing," Seth retorted.

"You've been lying to me for months! You were spewing all this perfect boyfriend bollocks and spying on me at the same time!"

Seth raised an eyebrow, incredulous. "I'm sure you know how our business works, my fake American girlfriend. What we do isn't exactly something that's supposed to be public knowledge. Besides, how exactly do you start a first conversation with, 'Hi baby, guess what? I murder people for money'? And you're one to talk! Are you telling me all this time you actually didn't know who I was? You weren't spying on me too?"

"I didn't know about you," she answered truthfully.

"I want to believe you, but I can't, seeing as we're meant to be well-trained at manipulating questions. Or people."

"I didn't manipulate you. I'm telling the truth," said Lily. "Take it or leave it."

Seth paused, looking around. "You know why I brought you here?"

The blonde woman rolled her eyes. "For the brilliant dessert?" she quipped snidely.

"You know today's our eight-month anniversary, right?"

Taken aback, Lily's features softened. So he remembered. "Yes."

He let his gaze skim over her. "You look breathtaking."

Her body betrayed her by warming all over. _His eyes. Oh God_. Lifting her shoulder in a shrug, she raised her glass of champagne to her lips. "Well, you bought the dress so I guess you have good taste," she said grudgingly, even if it was the truth.

Brown eyes bored into grey ones. "It was all real to me, what you and I had."

Lily's heart skipped. "Was."

"Was," Seth repeated. "You?"

She eyed him suspiciously. Was this strategy? "Let's just say things changed when I found out you murdered my colleague." Lily crossed her arms, shooting him a defiant glare. "Her name was Daisy. You slit her throat and stuffed her into a fucking washing machine."

"It's called self-defense," Seth replied harshly. "She came after _me _while I was minding my own business doing my laundry. Now, can you sit there and tell me you had nothing to do with that? Can you honestly tell me you didn't send her to take me out?"

"I didn't send her after you," said Lily.

"And why should I believe you?"

"Like you wanted me to believe you were unarmed?"

Seth's brows furrowed. At the same time his fingers felt under the table. His gun was gone.

"Looking for this?"

His Glock dangled from Lily's dainty fingers. Her eyes, alight with rage, never left his as she unloaded the gun, letting the bullets drop one by one onto the table with loud smacks. Four in all. She left one inside the chamber. Seth knew what was coming. "Lily..."

Pointing the gun at him, she squeezed the trigger. At the same time he lashed out, knocking the gun out of her hand. The gun went off, leading to chaos inside the restaurant as people began screaming and running for their lives. Seth picked up the gun from the ground and saw Lily had already disappeared out the entrance. He tore after her. Uh-uh. She wasn't getting away this time.

He ran out into the street. "Hey bro, where's my car?" he demanded the valet.

"Oh, your wife said you'll take a cab home, Mr. Rollins," the valet replied innocently.

"My wife?" Seth repeated, confused.

The sound of squealing tires alerted him. He spun around and saw his beloved Maserati powering towards him. Lily was in the driver's seat, her silver eyes ablaze. The car gathered speed, driving straight at him. Seth flew out of the way, watching dumbfounded for a moment. He then grabbed the keys of the car in the valet's charge, jumped in and sped off after her.

* * *

The chase ended at Lily's house. Seth smashed his car right through the automated iron gates as they were closing in. His car sat abandoned, as Lily had disappeared into the house. Seth rushed to his car and reached in, pressing a couple of buttons. A fizzing sound, then a Colt Automatic rifle emerged from underneath the passenger seat. Seth snatched it and snuck towards the house. Door was locked. Windows too. He tossed his tie and jacket aside and rolled up his shirt sleeves. He kicked at the window until it shattered, and hauled himself inside.

A Beretta M12 in each hand, Lily prowled the house, in full assault mode. Her heels were gone. Her hair was tied up to clear her line of vision. She heard the window smash open and she snuck out of sight. She crouched in the middle of the staircase, waiting, like a cobra poised to strike.

Seth crept further into the house, pointing his Colt in all directions. He made sure to tread carefully. This was her territory after all. She knew the perimeter like the back of her hand and could be lurking anywhere. "Come on, beautiful," he whispered, "Come to daddy."

He got his wish. The sound of gunfire rang out, and he ducked as bullets flew past his ear. He zoomed across the living room, crouch-running, and caught a glimpse of golden hair out of the corner of his eye.

Lily spotted him, and she fired rapidly. Seth rolled out of the way, then leapt to his feet and shot at the staircase. Lily ducked behind a wall, and nearly had her head blown off by the bullets that tore into the walls. There was an opening, leading to the kitchen, and she took off without hesitation. Seth went after her, blasting the vicinity apart with round after round. Lily threw open the refrigerator door to shield her. As his bullets bounced off the sub-zero steel door, Lily fired at him again, and he dropped behind the counter table. There was silence. Peeking out cautiously, he saw that Lily was gone. He emerged from behind the counter table, gun locked in his arms, on high alert as he made his way out of the kitchen. The place was a disaster zone, but if it took destroying her house to get to her, he would do it.

Suddenly, he heard an angry scream from behind him, and he spun around in time for his gun to be kicked out of his hand. Lily attacked with a big fist into his gut and a brutal uppercut to his face. Seth retaliated with a hard yank of her hair and shoved her hard against the wall. Lily ducked as Seth's incoming fist planted the spot where her head had been against the wall. He recovered quickly, catching her throwing her bodily onto the dining table. Glass flew everywhere. Seth stood over Lily as she dragged herself onto her hands and knees. As he reached for her again, Lily swung her leg backwards and took him down with a leg sweep. She grabbed for the gun lying nearby, but Seth smacked it away and yanked her leg from underneath her so she landed right on her face. He straddled her and slammed her head onto the ground, an audible 'woof' leaving her mouth. He laid punch after punch into her body, but she managed to weave her arm around his head and squeezed, trying to choke him out. Her long legs clamped around his waist as she tightened the hold. But she was no match for his strength. Even with her wrapped around his body, Seth stumbled to his feet and rushed headfirst into a cabinet full of glass cups, with Lily taking the brunt of the force. He then ran into a wall repeatedly, forcing her to release him. She snatched a piece of china and smashed it onto his head, bringing him back to his knees.

The two adversaries continued to beat the hell out of each other until they were exhausted. Struggling to their feet, they faced each other. Disheveled. Wounded. Expended. Refusing to give it up. A wild-eyed Seth raised his fists, awaiting another onslaught. Wiping at her bleeding lip, Lily caught sight of her Berettas on the floor. Both still full of rounds to pump into Seth's stomach. Seth followed her gaze and saw the guns as well. He knew she was thinking the same thing he was. They exchanged a glance, then dived towards the guns. Seth caught one. Lily got the other. They sprang up and spun around, pointing their weapons in each other's faces.

They stood there for what felt like an eternity, breathing hard and trembling. Then, Seth shook his head, lowering his gun. "I can't."

"Don't!" Lily barked, cocking her gun and thrusting it back in his face. "Don't you dare! Let's finish this!"

Seth stood his ground. "No."

"Why not?" She let out a hysterical, almost maniacal laugh. "Finish what you started, you fucking coward!"

"If being helplessly in love with you makes me a coward, then so be it."

At his words Lily flinched, visibly flinched. Of all the numerous blows he had inflicted on her tonight, none of them hit as hard as those words. Her face was as pale as her eyes, and her features went slack with shock. Her mouth went dry, her mind unable to piece two coherent thoughts together.

Seth saw the look on her face and swallowed hard. "I love you, Lily. And whether you believe it or not, my feelings for you have always been real. You're the best thing that ever happened to me, and all I've ever wanted is for you to be happy." He tossed his gun at her feet and met her eyes. He was tired of fighting her. Fighting his feelings. "So if killing me will make you happy and be at peace with yourself, go right ahead. Take me out. I'd die for you if it means you'll be safe."

Lily's mouth remained parted in shock. Her gun was still pointed, but her hand trembled slightly now. Tears filled her grey eyes as she continued to stare at him. Seth gazed at her one final time before turning around to walk away, steeling himself for the bullet about to rip into his back.

He heard a clattering sound, then felt Lily grab his arm and spin him around. He expected her to blow his brains out but instead she leapt into his arms, crushing her lips to his. Seth staggered back a bit before holding on to her firmly, returning her kiss just as passionately. His face became wet with her tears. Tongues clashed, tasting each other for the first time in what felt like forever to both of them. Seth took a few clumsy steps forward and slammed her hard against the wall. Lily grunted in pain but didn't let go. He pushed her dress up to her waist and wedged his body between her legs. Lily shoved his shirt down his arms and grabbed his face again, planting frantic kisses on his face; cheeks, nose, jaw, lips. She couldn't get enough of him. She didn't want to.

Seth pushed off the wall and slid down to the floor, taking Lily with him. Lily pulled off his pants and he managed to discard her dress. Laying amongst the debris, they stared at each other, drinking in each other's nakedness. Then dipping his head, he kissed her bare body, his lips and tongue moving skillfully over the curves of her breasts, the flat plane of her stomach, the juncture between her legs. Lily gasped out loud when his tongue flicked at her entrance, but she seized him by the hair and pulled his head up. No foreplay. They'd waited too agonizingly long for any more stalling.

Understanding, Seth started to climb back on top of her but to his surprise Lily rolled them over and straddled him, shoving him down to the ground hard. The look on her face told him she planned on taking control of this bout. This time, he wasn't going to complain.

Lily lowered her face to Seth's and covered his mouth with hers. She felt him grab her hips and groan as he lowered her onto his erection. Seth sucked hungrily on Lily's lips as she found a rhythm, sliding up and down his shaft. Her hands caught his roaming ones and pinned them over his head, linking their fingers together. Kissing became difficult as neither could breathe, both becoming more vocal as she rode him violently. Seth lifted his hips, burying himself deep inside her, and Lily let out a loud moan, throwing her head back as she matched his movements thrust for thrust. There was no gentleness in their actions. The adrenaline from their fight still lingered, turning this tryst into a second battle. There was a primal, animalistic urgency between them, a loss of control that neither had ever felt before, and it only served to make the sex mind-blowing.

Seth unlocked their hands and rolled Lily underneath him. He spread her legs wide and fucked her hard and rough, his skin slapping noisily against hers. Crying out, her back arched off the floor. She reached for something, anything to hold on to, and when she settled on Seth's ass, he growled, tucking his head in the crook of her neck. "Fuck..." he panted, grabbing her thigh and pushing deeper into her. Each press of his body brought a hoarse whimper from her. He grunted when Lily's nails dug into his shoulder blades. Both were breathing heavily and moaning as they rocked back and forth on the littered floor. Seth swore as he felt her walls clamp tightly around him, the sensation rippling down his spine. He thrust harder, accelerated until Lily cried out, clinging to him as she came. Seth followed suit, her name leaving his lips in a guttural groan before he crumpled on top of her.

They lay on the floor, their bodies trembling from the intense orgasm. Lily curled up against Seth, running her fingers through his dampened hair. "What you said," she asked quietly. "Did you mean it?"

Seth gazed at her, and the look in his beautiful brown eyes told her the answer.

"Every word."


	20. Survival Mode

_**Woooo! 50 reviews for Hounds Undone! Thank you guys! Keep them coming, I appreciate them. Special thanks to **__CheekyClaudine__, __Maashmellow__, __TajiaK__** and **__nikki1335__** for the last reviews.**_

* * *

"Any sign of life on the premises?"

"Negative. Gunfire exchange a couple of hours ago but nothing now." A pause. "Permission to proceed."

"Permission granted. Clean sweep. Leave no evidence."

"Copy that. Over and out."

* * *

"Ahhh, _fuck_!"

"God, Seth!" Lily cried out, clutching the man in question tightly as yet another orgasm ripped through her. She felt him throb inside her, heard his moan as he joined her in ecstasy before he held her close. It was minutes before either could move, with Lily finally dismounting Seth to allow him to sit up against the wall. "That was...unbelievable," she breathed.

"You know, it's gonna take me some time to get used to your accent. Ow," Seth grimaced, gingerly poking at his side. "I think you cracked my rib."

Lily burst into laughter. "Aw, big bad killing machine couldn't handle me?" They had spent the last couple of hours making love and coming clean to each other. Lily told Seth about her family, the night her innocence was stolen forever after her parents' murders, how her one-woman crusade for revenge led her to the higher echelons of F.L.O.R.A. Seth talked to Lily about his childhood in Iowa, his psychotic stepfather and the excuse for a mother that took his beloved father away for no other reason except for her selfish interests. It was safe to say that both their eyes had been opened by the events of the past week. The sun was now starting to rise and its warm rays filtered into the partly destroyed house. Seth stared lovingly at the blonde woman in his arms, marveling at how angelic she looked in the morning sun.

"I think I handled you just fine, sweetheart," he replied, stroking her hair. "I've broken my ribs previously before, in three places."

"Oh, I've had tons of injuries," Lily said, and pointed at her face. "My left retina is scarred. I'm slightly color-blind in that eye."

Seth held up the index and pinky finger on his left hand. "I can't feel anything in these fingers. Plus I perforated my eardrum once. Fucking painful."

"The bruise you saw on my arm when I returned from San Francisco? I got that while taking out Wade Barrett."

"_That's _what you went to San Francisco for? To kill Wade Barrett?"

"Yeah." Lily shook her head as she reminisced. "It wasn't easy getting to him. He was guarded to the teeth, paranoid bastard."

"We took out John Cena," Seth informed her proudly.

Lily's eyes widened. "Now you're just bragging."

"Nope. True story." Seth tilted his head to the side in thought, staring hard at Lily. "Wait...the Primetime Lounge, the night we first met...the Mayor of Miami's aide. That was you?"

Lily's smile was wide. "Poisoned dart. And I take it you were at the club to put Titus O'Neil and Darren Young away?"

"Yep."

"Impressive."

Seth grinned and gave her a wink. "Not just impressive. I'm the _best_."

"That you are, darling, in more ways than one," Lily smirked, sliding her foot in between his. A couple of seconds passed in silence before she spoke again. "Lily isn't my real name. I changed it when I joined F.L.O.R.A."

Seth smiled, stroking the top of her head absently. "Seth Rollins isn't my real name. I didn't want my name to be traced back to my mother, so I ended up ditching it permanently after The Authority recruited me."

"I figured you had a different name," said Lily. "I tried to find out information about Seth Rollins and came up with zilch." Taking a deep breath, the Englishwoman looked up at her lover. "There really is a lot we don't know about each other."

"Hopefully we'll have time to rectify that," Seth replied, placing a soft kiss to her temple. Lily leaned into him, loving the feel of his lips on her skin. "You know I almost didn't go through with this, carrying out the hit on you," she spoke softly, watching their interlocked fingers before meeting his gaze again. "The thought of hurting you made me sick. Then you started attacking me too, and I nearly went mental. Retaliating was instinctual, what I've been trained to do for so long. But deep down inside, I didn't know what to do, how to feel anymore."

"That was before either of us knew what we know now." Seth brushed her golden hair out of her face, allowing him to see those gorgeous eyes of hers more clearly. "We didn't want to admit how we really felt about one another."

Shaking her head, Lily said, "Because we couldn't admit it. Acknowledging our feelings for each other goes against everything we stand for."

"No, not '_we_'. What our _companies _stand for," Seth corrected. "There's a difference. That we represent them doesn't mean we agree with all their policies and beliefs." He paused, shaking his head. "I never thought that way before, you know. I followed everything by the book, to the letter, because it was all I've ever known. But all of that changed when I met you, Lily," he added tenderly, placing his hand on her cheek. "And frankly, I'd rather have you."

"I feel the same way," Lily smiled softly and turned her head to kiss his palm. "You know they're going to come after us now, once they find out," she said, a quiet trepidation in her tone as she gave the two tone-haired man a serious look, "Both our employers. And if things go their way, we may end up spending the rest of our lives running."

Seth's hand moved from her cheek to her hair, a protective urge pulsing through his veins. "Do you trust me?"

Lily didn't need to search very far for the answer. "Yes."

"Then believe me when I say we'll make it out of this alive," he promised. "Together."

"I believe you." She caressed his face, her eyes cloudy with desire. "Kiss me, Seth."

Like he needed telling twice. He obliged her, moaning softly when her tongue immediately darted into his mouth and she clutched the back of his hair. The kiss changed pace within seconds, becoming needier, more passionate. Hands moved everywhere, stroking and caressing bare flesh. Movements became more heated as another round of mind-blowing sex was imminent. Seth pulled away from Lily briefly, catching his breath, then leaned in to kiss her again when he saw the red dot dancing on her forehead. He recognized it instantly.

Holy shit.

"Get down!" He shoved her down to the ground and rolled her away just as a volley of bullets tore into the spot where the blonde woman's head had been half a second ago. Seizing pieces of their clothing from the floor, they military-crawled to a safer location before staggering to their feet and hurrying down the landing. Lily struggled to put on Seth's shirt while he hopped into his slacks. They heard a door slam shut and they froze, gaping at each other as they heard a small creaking sound. Footsteps. The enemy was definitely inside the house.

"One of yours?" Suspicion found its way into Lily's eyes again.

"No. Definitely not. I swear," Seth replied sincerely, his bare chest heaving. "Come on." He grabbed her hand and darted into the ruined kitchen.

"I've got guns," Lily started to say, but Seth shook his head as he snatched a kitchen knife. "We don't have time...Lily, what are you doing?" he asked, confused as she pressed a bunch of numbers on the surface of her microwave. A Beretta emerged from underneath. She shook her head at her boyfriend as she loaded the gun quickly and tossed it to him, before retrieving another for herself. Seth managed a smile despite the incoming chaos.

A resounding crash echoed through the house, then the Assassin darted past the kitchen, shooting into it. Lily turned her gun on him, missing the man by inches. She stopped when she spotted the grenade tossed on the floor. "Shit! Get out of here!" she screamed, grabbing Seth and shoving him out of the kitchen, mere seconds before the grenade detonated, engulfing the entire area in hot flames and smoke. Lily's bedroom dropped from the sky and crashed to the earth with a deafening thud. Seth and Lily leapt away, throwing themselves behind an upturned silverware cabinet in the living room area. The two looked over the polished black wood to see Lily's bed in the front hall, a few feet away. It was one of the strangest sights either would ever see.

Suddenly the smoke and dust in the room parted as the Assassin barreled towards them. Seth moved fast, kicking the cabinet with all his might towards their shadowy assailant. At the same time, Lily fired shots at the man. A bullet caught him in the thigh, and the Assassin collapsed with a small, pained grunt. He glanced up to see the couple turn a corner, racing upstairs. The man stared up at the wide hole he'd left in the ceiling from the first blast. He waited for the two targets to come into his sight before drawing out two grenades and hurling them powerfully upwards.

Seth's eyes widened as the grenades hurtled towards them. Instinctively, he kicked one back down with the dexterity of a soccer player, just as Lily used her gun as an impromptu baseball bat to smack the other downwards. Both were thrown off their feet by the subsequent explosion, as the rest of the house was destroyed by the impact of the two grenades, effectively trapping Seth and Lily upstairs. A huge fire began to climb from below, licking at their feet. Lily and Seth looked up to see the ceiling cracking, ripping apart. What was left of the ground beneath their bare feet began to disintegrate. The house was falling apart, seconds away from burying them alive.

Lily and Seth looked at each other, knowing what they had to do. They sprinted across the room at full speed and leaped out the glass window, narrowly avoiding the devastating explosion. They crashed two stories down into a couple of hedges, recovering in enough time to watch in a daze as Lily's home fell apart, layer by layer, crumbling to the ground until all that was left was a smoking, smoldering pit.

The couple dragged themselves to their feet, their skin and clothes caked with dirt and blood as they looked at the shambles of the once beautiful mansion. Seth noticed Lily's eyes glaze over and tugged at her hand. "Lily, there's more where that guy came from. We have to go. Now."

The blonde woman finally tore her gaze away from the destruction to meet Seth's. He was right. "We need a car," she stated curtly, survival instincts kicking in. She glanced over at the house on the other side of the fence. Lily's neighbors. Seth could see where her head was at. Without a word they rushed towards the fence, leaping over easily. Putting their breaking and entering skills to use, they got into the house and quietly raided it, finding new clothes for themselves and stocking up on food and water. They knew they would not be able to make stops for any reason.

Seth navigated the stolen SUV down the road. "What now?" he asked.

Lily stared out the window, distant. "Clearly they want us dead, just as we predicted," she said, more to herself than to Seth. "What we need is something to trade for our lives. Something our companies want more than they want us."

"Where the hell are we gonna find that kind of leverage?" asked Seth.

The blonde woman's grey eyes narrowed, her mind racing. Then the answer came to her. Of course! "Arizona."

Seth briefly took his gaze off the road to look at her in surprise. "Arizona? What's in Arizona?"

"Remember our mission in Vegas?"

"Yeah."

"Well, let's just say I know that a certain target of ours is being hidden there. We're going to find him. Both our companies wanted him dead for a reason, and we're going to find out why. Think you're up for it?"

Seth looked at her. "I love playing hide-and-seek."

Lily returned his grin. "Oh, you're going to _enjoy_ this one."

* * *

_**Thoughts?**_


	21. The Decoy

_**Thank you **__TajiaK__, __Maashmellow__, __Alexis Black-Reigns__, __nikki1335 __**and **__Kenikia67 __**for reviewing! Much appreciated!**_

* * *

_Thirty-six hours later_

_Phoenix, Arizona_

Dolph Ziggler rolled his eyes for the hundredth time, wondering when the hell he was going to get out of this shithole. Ever since the attempt on his life a couple of weeks ago, he'd been hidden away in a bunker in an elusive Courthouse in Phoenix, where he would remain in custody until his process into the Witness Protection Program was completed. Unlike the lavish comfort of the hotel suite at the MGM Arena in Las Vegas, this place felt like a dumpster. There were no distractions for Dolph to indulge in. He was under watch twenty-four hours a day and he felt like a prisoner. Why the fuck was it taking _weeks_ to move him into the Program anyway? Especially if they knew his life was in grave danger?

Outside, his door was manned by four FBI Agents, all of whom were lounging and reading newspapers. A fifth rounded the corner with two boxes of pepperoni pizza in his arms. "About fucking time, I'm starving," one of the agents said, throwing aside his newspaper and opening one of the boxes his colleague set down on the table.

The sound of an alarm suddenly rang all around the Courthouse, interrupting their meal. The Agents instantly dropped their pizza and jumped to their feet, hands reaching for the guns in their holsters. Suddenly, one dropped to the ground, unconscious, a tranquilizer dart sticking out of his neck. The other Agents raised their weapons to attack, but how did one aim at an unseen target? Left with this disadvantage, another fell. And another. And another. Within seconds all five men were down, out cold and not to stir for another three hours.

Dolph shot to his feet as he heard sounds of a scuffle outside his door. Suddenly it burst open and a Courthouse guard ran up to him, looking harassed. "Follow me Sir," the man said with a heavy Southern accent. "I've got orders to get you outta here."

Dolph's eyes narrowed. He'd never seen this man before. Actually he had, but not in the Courthouse. "D'you think I'm a fucking idiot?"

The guard rolled his brown eyes, his accent transforming instantly. "Why do they always want to do it the hard way?"

As he spoke, the guard whipped out his gun, the butt of the weapon cracking over Dolph's head and knocking him out where he stood. "Fucking arrogant piece of shit," the guard murmured, dragging the prone body of Ziggler through a vent grill in the corner, but not before pitching a grenade back into the room. A gift for the Feds, if you will.

Several FBI Agents had arrived at the scene, and they took their command positions outside Dolph Ziggler's bedroom. The Team Leader raised his hand in a signal to lead the charge into the room. They threw open the door, rushing in when they saw a small object roll towards them. They felt the impact of the explosion before they could decipher what it was. All of them fell to the floor, stunned and temporarily blinded by the percussive grenade, but alive. Barely.

Lily spoke into her earpiece, worried. "Blonde to Skunk, I heard an explosion. Where are you?"

"Why do I have to be called Skunk?"

"We don't have time for this! Where are you?"

A heavy sigh followed. "Fine. Skunk to Blonde. The cargo is in my possession," was Seth's reply, "We move now."

Lily quickly shut the titanium suitcase containing the laptop and communications kit and moved over to the driver's seat. Seth emerged through the rolling smoke, Ziggler slumped and unconscious over his shoulder. "Well, that was a mess," Lily smirked.

Seth rolled his eyes. "It worked, didn't it?" He dumped Ziggler in the back seat, sitting him upright so he would look like he was asleep. Seth jumped into the passenger seat. "Go."

She revved the engine and they drove off.

* * *

Dolph slowly opened his eyes and was met with yet another fist in his face. Seth and Lily had taken him into a small, obscure motel room to interrogate him. They had been in there for a while and so far, he wasn't saying a word, and it was pissing Seth off.

"Seth, what are you doing?" Lily watched as he laid into Dolph again, the man's platinum blond hair flying as his head snapped back.

"I'm working." Another punch.

"You're going to kill him."

"That was my left hand, sweetheart. Take a seat. We'll be done in a minute."

Lily sighed out loud. She knew she was bearing witness to another episode of the two tone-haired man at his most blood-thirsty, but now was not the time to be reckless. "Seth, stop."

He ignored her. He squatted in front of Dolph and roughly patted his cheek. "Hey! Ziggler, look at me."

Dolph didn't seem to have heard him. Instead he was staring at Lily, his battered gaze travelling up and down the length of her delectable body. Seth raised his eyebrow, incredulous. _Is this shithead eyeballing my girl?! _"Ziggler! I said look at me! Are you going to tell us why both our Bosses want you dead or not?"

Dolph finally turned his attention to Seth. His hands were tied tightly behind his back, as were his legs, and was at the mercy of two deadly assassins. But he remained as defiant as ever, almost as if despite the position he was in, he still had the upper hand. Spitting out the blood from his mouth to the side, he glared at Seth. "You kill me, you got nothing," he taunted.

"Oh, _nothing_ would give me more pleasure than blowing your brains out." Seth stood back up and shook his head, losing patience. Lily checked her nails lazily as she spoke. "He does have a point, Seth."

Seth levelled his girlfriend with a glare. "You think you can do better?" he challenged, thrusting his gun at her and making an exaggerated sweeping gesture with his free arm. "Go ahead."

Lily uncrossed her ankles and pushed off the wall with a smile. Both men's eyes were on her. "I'm not going to need that," she waved Seth's gun away, and looked over at Dolph with narrow, seductive eyes and an even more seductive smile.

Seth's dark eyes were wide as he realized her plan, and he felt his blood boil and his fingers itch. "Lily, can I talk to you for a second?" Without waiting for her to respond, he pulled her away from Dolph and led her to a corner. Seth rounded on her, his face like thunder. "_Are you fucking kidding me?_" he hissed loudly. "You're going to _seduce_ him? In front of _me_?"

"Calm down!" Lily hissed back. "Now is not the time to be jealous!"

"What? I should just stand there and watch while you shove your tits in his face? Is that what happens every time you've got to take out a guy? Fuck him before you ice him?" Seth was livid. How many other men had put their hands on her, before and while they were together? How many had she _allowed_?

"Listen to me!" Lily snapped through gritted teeth. He was being exasperating. "I know you're tense right now and want answers, but do _not_ take it out on me. Now take a break and let me handle this. I know what I'm doing."

"Somehow I doubt that," Seth muttered under his breath, and he regretted the words as soon as he said them. Yes, it was silly and immature of him, but they were wasting time. He just couldn't shake off the inkling in the pit of his gut that there was more to this situation they were facing. Ziggler was being too calm, too confident for Seth's liking.

Lily glared at her boyfriend, unable to hide her hurt. She shut her eyes, calming, centering herself, and when she opened them again, she was cool, professional again, but there was an edge to her tone as she replied. "I'm going to pretend you didn't say that," she told him curtly. They stood close, the air between them heated, tense. "I'm going back to talk to the hostage. When you're certain you're not going to make an arse of yourself, come back in." She turned her back on him before she knocked his fucking lights out for disrespecting her like that. He wasn't the biggest person she had encountered before, not by a mile.

Dolph smirked when Lily came back into his view. "Trouble in paradise?"

Lily's smile was gorgeous. "Forgive my partner over there. He's a bit...assertive." She reached up and pulled out the band holding her hair, letting the fair tresses fall around her shoulders. Dolph's eyes widened, and for the first time since his abduction, he looked a little nervous. The blonde woman slowly approached him, her hair down, slender, beautiful fingers on the buttons of her blouse. She looked absolutely ravishing.

"Dolph..." she said his name softly, "Dolph, we don't want to hurt you."

"We don't?" grumbled Seth.

"Seth, behave. We just want to ask a few questions, Dolph."

She moved behind him, her hand lazily trailing the chair, fingertips brushing his shoulder. She heard his breath catch as her fingers traced his chin, then his cheek. "We know you're a controversial journalist. You've stepped on a few toes...pissed off some people. We understand that. All we want to know is why our Bosses want to kill you, for such a high price for that matter."

She was close. She knew by the way Dolph's jaw clenched. He was struggling to hold tight, to remain stubborn. Seth was struggling as well. He gripped his gun tighter, his finger on the trigger.

Lily leaned down behind Dolph and let her slender hands slide down his chest, her face close to his ear, "That's all we want to know, Dolph. If you cooperate, all of this will be over. You have my word."

She waited for a response, then her eyes narrowed when she heard a chuckling sound, which she realized was coming from Dolph. Standing upright, she looked at him and saw his head thrown back, laughing his head off. Lily and Seth glanced at each other. Something was wrong.

"Do you really think I'm going to fall for the tacky burlesque moves?" Dolph said, still laughing, but his eyes held a knowing, dangerous glint. "You're hot as hell, but not _that_ hot, Lily...or is it _Tatiana_?"

Lily froze, staring at him.

"You tell _me_, Lily," Dolph went on. "Why would The Authority and F.L.O.R.A. come after little old me?" His grin spread at their widened eyes. "Of course you wouldn't know. Let me ask you another question; did you think your companies didn't know who each of you were? Did you think they appreciated this little romance you've got going on, hmm? Did you really, Lily? Rollins?"

Seth crossed his arms and glared at Dolph. Alarm bells were ringing in his head. But he couldn't quite point out why, and it unnerved him. "I knew you recognized me at the Courthouse," he said quietly. His hands were burning now. Aching for a kill.

"But _how?_" asked Lily, completely puzzled, "He's never seen you before!"

"Oh, but I have. They showed me your photo when they brought me in for this job." Dolph continued talking, sounding braver by the second. "You two are worrying about the wrong person. I'm not the one your companies are collaborating to take out."

Lily went pale. "_Collaborating?_"

Seth felt a chill course through his spine. The pieces were slowly coming together. "The hit in Las Vegas was a set-up," he said, turning to a stunned Lily. "_This _is a set-up. It was never about Ziggler, Lil. It was about _us_."

"Right you are, Rollins! Fifty points to Gryffindor! I'm not the target here. I never was. _You _are. Both of you. The Authority and F.L.O.R.A. have been working together for months, trying to eliminate you both. And thanks to me, they're going to succeed and I'm getting the payday of a lifetime." He grinned evilly at the two assassins. "I hope you've made peace with your Maker because you, my friends, are about to die."

* * *

_**Whoa boy. Thoughts?**_


	22. Fight or Flight

_**Massive group hug to **__Maashmellow__, __Alexis Black-Reigns__, __CheekyClaudine__, __TajiaK__, __nikki1335__** and **__Kenikia67__** for the last set of feedback. Glad you're all enjoying this. Thanks for lifting my spirits. Enjoy 22!**_

* * *

Lily's eyes narrowed. There was more to this, much more. And only Ziggler knew about it. "Who do you work for?" she demanded.

"I'm a freelance investigative journalist," Dolph smirked. "Everyone knows that."

"No. Who do you _really _work for?" Lily pressed. "You only garner that level of Intel if you're an insider. So which one is it, Dolph? Who did you sell your soul to? F.L.O.R.A.? The Authority?" Lily stared him down. "Both?"

"Wouldn't you like to know," Dolph sneered.

Seth was done playing Mr. Nice Guy. Stepping forward, he seized the hem of Dolph's shirt and stuffed it into the surprised hostage's mouth. Then he pulled out his gun, jammed it into Dolph's left knee and fired.

The bullet shattered Dolph's left kneecap, which disintegrated in an explosion of tissue and bone. A shrill, unearthly scream emanated from the man's throat, and he thrashed around wildly in the confines of his chair, nearly falling over in the process. But Seth grabbed the chair, holding it steady as the hostage writhed in agony, his pale blue eyes wide and glassy with pain.

Seth bent close to his ear. "Not so mouthy now, are ya?" he hissed, yanking the cotton material out of Dolph's mouth. "You better answer the lady's question or the other leg's going too."

Dolph gasped and shook violently from the pain surging through him. "Fuck!"

"You got three seconds, Ziggler. One, two..." Seth pressed the barrel to the other knee.

"Okay, okay! I'll t-t-talk." Dolph swallowed hard in an attempt to moisten his dry throat. "I-I…I'm not exactly who the world thinks I am," he stammered, looking back and forth between them. "I'm a liaison, a middleman if you will. I assist independent contractors like your companies with assignments. I g-give them info on potential targets and sometimes if they need me to, I act as bait. I get good money for it, and let's just say it feeds the adrenaline junkie in me.

"Both your Bosses found out that you became involved with each other, and they weren't happy. Two competing agents in a relationship? It's bad for business, and it never looks good, going against your precious Code and all. So they teamed up and then sent you to the same hit, knowing more than likely that you would meet. It was a win-win situation for both companies, really. They gave me the details and I went with it, no questions asked. I was bait. That's all I've ever been."

Seth and Lily stared at each other, stunned.

"Remember Daisy?" Dolph went on, and Lily's eyes snapped back to him. "F.L.O.R.A. sent her after Rollins on purpose. They knew she wasn't ready to be out in the field yet. They knew Rollins would kill her without batting an eyelash. Her death was planned so you would find out about it and it would be an added incentive to take him out."

Lily had gone pale. She turned her back on the two men, her mind screaming. Jesus. Daisy had been a pawn for nothing other than Lily's destruction. Why? What had Daisy ever done to deserve being disposed of like she was nothing?

Dolph looked like he was about to say more when he stopped. His eyes narrowed, as if listening to something, then he smiled for the first time since losing his left leg. "They know you're here."

Seth's brown eyes darkened dangerously. "We're supposed to be dead. How do they know?" he demanded. When Dolph didn't respond immediately, the two tone-haired man grabbed him by the shirt again. "Answer me!"

Reluctantly, Dolph opened his mouth wide. "Look at my tooth. Left molar."

Ensconced inside one of his teeth was a silver dental filling. Lily peered at it. "Biological tracking device," she analyzed. "F.L.O.R.A. uses stuff like this all the time. They look like any ordinary part of your body, so it's virtually untraceable. We've been followed, that's for sure."

Dolph continued speaking. "Yeah, and they're coming after you now. It's only a matter of _when_ they kill you, because they won't stop until you're dead. You're a threat now. They know you're the best in your fields and they're going to use every means possible to eliminate you."

"And you were one of those means, right?" Lily questioned. "You're just another pawn in their chess set, and now that you've hand-delivered us, you're worthless to them now. You do know that, right?" she asked, a touch of satisfaction swelling within her when his expression fell. Evidently, he didn't.

A sharp sound echoed across the room, and Dolph tore his eyes away from Lily to find a Swiss Army knife in Seth's grasp. He took in the two assassins standing in front of him with murderous expressions on their faces, and swallowed hard. "Come on, you're not going to kill me now, are you?" he squeaked.

"We don't think of it as a killing," Seth replied, moving behind Dolph's chair. "We just think of it as getting rid of some loose ends."

Dolph shrieked as pain seared through his throat. The next thing he knew, he toppled over, still bound to his chair, and he gasped as he crashed face-first to the ground. The chair was upended and balanced against the vanity table in such a way that Dolph was now upside down. His neck throbbed. He glanced up to see Seth's blade was now stained with blood. His blood.

"What...what did you do to me?" Dolph croaked. Seth ripped off his gloves, not bothering to make eye contact as he explained. "I just cut you open a little bit. You're going to lose a lot of blood in a short amount of time. You'll feel lightheaded in minutes, then you'll be dead within half an hour." Seth stared angrily at the fallen man. "If we do die, then at least you'll go down with us. Come on, Lily." He led her out through the back door into their SUV. Seth ripped the vehicle into gear, backing out of the parking lot and speeding off.

"They're a step ahead," the two tone-haired man murmured, his brain whirring, searching for a solution. "They've been a step ahead of us ever since we met each other. He was right. They won't stop until we're both dead."

Lily made no response. She was unable to, still spooked by everything she'd just heard. Poor Daisy.

"We've gotta take them out," Seth continued.

"What?" Lily turned to him. Surely she hadn't heard him right.

"Our companies. We have to take them all out if we're going to survive this," Seth repeated, making a sharp turn to the right.

Lily was in shock. "You want to take out an army of assassins?" she asked. "Seth, we have to _run_."

"We are going be running for the rest of our lives! Do you want that? I don't!"

"Have you even stopped to think about this?" Lily said, "There's only two of us!"

"We are not running, Lily. That's final."

"So what, I don't have a say in this?" she glowered. "Your word is law now?"

Seth started to respond when he looked through his rearview mirror to see a sleek silver Mercedes charging towards them. "We got company."

Lily grabbed a sniper rifle from the bag of weapons they retrieved at the Courthouse. They may not be able to take them all out, but they could at least start with these. She crawled into the back and popped down the reclining seats to give her room. Sliding open the side door of the SUV just a crack, she stuck her arm out, aimed at the Mercedes and fired. The driver was hit right between the eyes and it swerved into a ditch. But right afterwards, a black Ford Explorer swung into a lane, joining in the hunt. Two men were in the front seats, and they opened fire. Another car, a black Subaru, had joined them on the left side, where heavy machine-gunfire exploded. Lily threw herself back inside. "Shit!"

"Give me a gun!" Seth yelled.

"What?"

"I said give me a gun!"

"You're driving!"

"This ain't my first gig, sweetheart," said Seth, "now do as I say."

For a brief moment, Lily was tempted to give him an earful, but decided against it and reached into the bag, thrusting a handgun at him. That very moment, the Subaru raced up to the driver's side, and Seth sprayed bullets into the side of the car, which swerved erratically and disappeared from sight.

Lily fired at the Ford Explorer. In one fluid motion the driver swung round the back of Seth's SUV and veered up along Seth's side, hoping to catch the two tone-haired man while distracted with his driving. But the other side of Seth's SUV also had a sliding door, where Lily was waiting with two guns in hand. She got the windows but missed the tires.

A fourth vehicle, a Range Rover, pulled up next to Seth when he wasn't looking, and Lily saw the passenger aim at him. "Get down!" she screamed, throwing herself forwards. Without waiting she drove Seth's head down with one hand and drilled bullets into the Range Rover with the other.

"Ow! My head!" Seth shrieked from underneath Lily's powerful grip.

"Sorry," she quickly released him, and nearly fell out of the moving vehicle when the Ford Explorer slammed into the back of their SUV. Seth hit the accelerator, moving it hard. "Incoming!" he shouted, looking to his right. "Your side!"

Lily aimed and pulled the trigger, dismayed to hear the dull, hollow click from the chamber. Shit, she was out of ammo. She tried to get another weapon, but she knew it would be too late.

"Duck, Lily!"

Her instincts prompted her to obey, and she heard Seth's bullets flying above her, followed by a resounding crash. She looked behind her and saw nothing but road and debris. "Hostiles eliminated," she reported. "We're clear."

"The train station's up ahead," said Seth. "We ditch the car and hop on the first train to Stamford."

Racing into the station, they slowed to a brisk walk, trying to blend in, both pairs of eyes searching until they found the train. They slipped into the First Class cabin just as the door shut and the train began to pull out of the station.

Seth and Lily sat slumped in their compartment, exhausted and wired at the same time. The coach was empty, quiet, and the fact that they hadn't slept in two days was starting to affect them. But they didn't know if they could sleep when they knew the next attack could come from anywhere.

Seth looked across at Lily, sitting opposite him, and saw her lips pressed into a thin, hard line. Her arms were crossed tightly as she looked out the window. He could feel the fury emanating from her. "Lily..." He hesitated at first, but then fucked the consequences. "Lily, are you angry with me?"

"What do you think?" she spat, still not looking at him, stiffening when he came round to her side of the compartment and sat next to her. "Look at me." His voice was soft, pleading as he tried to sweet-talk her. His heart sank when she didn't budge. "Lily, please. Let me see those beautiful eyes." He cupped her face in both hands and turned her to him. Tearful grey eyes met confused brown ones.

"What are you _thinking_, Rollins? Did you see what happened back there? That was just a handful of them, and you want us to take on F.L.O.R.A. and The Authority by ourselves? We can't. And it's not like we can trust anyone to help us." She paused to reel herself in before she exploded on him. Then, taking a deep breath, she continued. "Look...we have to get out while we can. Have to. It's not cowardice, it's self-preservation. I don't care how long we run for as long as I'm with you, okay? All I want to do is protect you, and I'd rather die than let anything happen to you. Seth, I love you-"

Seth's heart skipped a beat. Lily loved him. His expression softened at her words, his eyes reflecting the love she just declared to him for the very first time. Lily's gaze was impassioned as she met his chocolate irises. "I love you," she repeated. Softly, boldly, "I love you so much...You're all I have left and I don't want to lose you. I _can't _lose you."

"And you won't," Seth vowed, "I promise." Slowly, he reached up to rest his palm against her cheek, gazing into her eyes. "You are so beautiful." Dipping his head, he covered her lips with his, kissing her with all the love he possessed inside him. Lily returned his kiss ardently, holding him tightly and never wanting to let go of him. When they finally broke apart, Seth put his arms around her, pressing a kiss to the top of her head, while Lily rested her head on his shoulder. "So...what now?" she asked, letting her fingers trace his forearm.

"We're going to lay low for a while, try to regroup." His eyes narrowed as he stared out the window. "There's only one place left that we can do that without being found."

"Where?"

"At a friend of mine's," Seth smiled at Lily. "I've been meaning to introduce you two, and I think she could do with some female company."

* * *

_**Any guesses? Thoughts?**_


	23. License To Kill

_**Thank you to **__Kenikia67__, __TajiaK__, __Alexis Black-Reigns__, __Maashmellow__** and **__nikki1335__** for the last reviews!**_

* * *

"What's the sit-rep, Miss Lee?" Hunter asked, seated behind his large oak desk as he observed the petite young woman across from him. Judging from the grim expression on her pretty features, she had bad news. Hunter was immediately displeased.

April Lee was never one to mince words. She spoke the way she handled her missions; cleanly, calmly, concisely. Dusting off her grey trouser suit, she gave her report. "The hostiles have gone AWOL sir," she said. "They were last seen at the Phoenix train station but we're unsure of their exact whereabouts. All of our men are unaccounted for. Dolph Ziggler has been found deceased in a motel room in the outskirts of Phoenix, a mile away from the Courthouse where he was being hidden. We believe Rollins and the F.L.O.R.A. agent are responsible."

Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns, also in Hunter's office, exchanged subtle but relieved glances. Their friend had escaped, just as they had hoped he would. He was safe, for now.

Randy Orton, meanwhile, was pacing back and forth in a corner, like a caged animal desperate for freedom. "So they got away. Again. Is that what you're saying, 'cause that's all I'm hearing." He stalked towards April, getting in her face. "You fucking let them get away _again_! Can you people not do _anything_ right?"

Orton easily towered over his female colleague, but she did not flinch. There was something lurking in the depths of her brown irises; a cold callousness that belied her calm demeanor. Randy could rant all he wanted, but if he so much as touched her the wrong way, he would regret it.

"Where are they now?" he demanded. "Do you even _know_?"

"We're working on it as we speak," April replied, peering passively at him.

"Obviously not working hard enough," Randy sniped. "They're going to disappear and it will be your fault, you and your incompetent buffoons!"

Roman had heard enough. "Leave her alone, Orton. How is this her fault?"

"You! Do _not _talk to me!" Randy rounded on the Samoan. "I don't see you rushing out looking for Rollins! You and Ambrose have let your _friendship_," he spat out the word like it was taboo, "cloud your judgment. As far as I'm concerned you're just as in breach of the Code as he is."

"Right, stand there and act like your blind hatred for him hasn't completely poisoned your mind," Roman retorted, standing his ground.

Randy scoffed. "This has _nothing_ to do with me. Seth was literally fucking the enemy right under our noses for months, and when he's given the simple task to eliminate her - a job which he accepted, mind you - he takes off with her! Open your eyes, big man! Seth Rollins has compromised The Authority," he went on, pointing around for emphasis. "He has compromised us all. He had no problem turning his back on us and choosing that bitch over us, so he should have no problem facing the consequences." Randy shrugged. "And if none of you can take him out...I'll have no problem doing it myself. Heck, you won't even have to pay me."

"Won't have to pay me to take _you _out, you self-righteous piece of shit," Dean growled, advancing.

Orton cracked his knuckles, a wide, maniacal smile on his face. "Is that right? Give it your best shot then, Ambrose."

Dean Ambrose never backed down from a fight in his life. His arms shot out, catching Randy square in the chest. The older man stumbled backwards, his expression briefly registering mild surprise. In a heartbeat, however, it was gone; replaced by a wild, incredulous glare. But just as he lunged, Roman intervened, throwing his arm across Dean's chest and yanking him out of Orton's reach, while April blocked the other snarling man.

Seated quietly at his desk, Hunter remained silent throughout the exchange, but when he eventually spoke his tone had an ominous edge to it. "If either of you lays a hand on the other again, I will guarantee it will be the last thing you ever do." His eyes were dark, dangerous, and each man knew better than to defy him.

Randy roughly shrugged off April 's arm and glared at Dean and Roman. "You're lucky I wasn't there with you the night you found Rollins. I'd have ended him there and then." His blue eyes blazed. "He was a liability then, and he's a liability now." He spat on the ground, before turning on his heel and storming out of the office.

Hunter still hadn't moved from his place at his desk. "Please excuse us, gentlemen. I need a word with Miss Lee."

He waited for them to leave before going over to his large computer screen and pressing a few keys on it. It was time to go all out. "We have a new top priority, April. Get everybody in this building to drop what they're doing and focus on this."

He pressed another key on the screen, and the images of Lily and Seth Rollins appeared side by side. "Upgrade the contract to Class One. Open house. Four hundred grand each. Whoever gets them first gets the bounty. Send the word out. These two must be eliminated, no matter what it takes to do it. Just get it done."

* * *

Roman and Dean gaped at the classified information on their iPads, shocked. Hunter had just sanctioned a free-for-all hit on Seth and Lily. For nearly half a million dollars per head. Every agent from The Authority would be gunning for Seth now. "Shit." Roman's voice was a subdued whisper.

Dean was fuming. "We have to help him."

"You know we can't," Roman said sadly. "There'll be a bullseye on our backs as well."

"Seth wouldn't have cared about that if he were in our shoes," the man from Cincinnati pointed out. "He would have stood up for us. You know that."

Roman nodded. He was right. "Then we stand up for him too, the only way we can right now." Scrolling down to the acceptance section of the message, he hit the 'Reject' button. Dean followed suit, and they put their devices away, their consciences easing only a little bit.

"I wish we could do more," Dean uttered after a while of silence.

"Me too," Roman sighed. Seth would have laid down his life for any one of them without question. They knew that. But this was out of their hands. There was little to no chance in hell of withstanding an onslaught of hundreds of assassins. So this was the only thing they could do. They would play no part in Seth's potential demise.

"Mr. Reigns. Mr. Ambrose," April appeared, seemingly out of nowhere. "Hope the pissing contest is over."

The worry was instantly wiped from their faces, replaced with detached, emotionless expressions. "Miss Lee. What can we do for you?" asked Roman.

"I saw that you both turned down the Rollins assignment. May I ask why?" The young woman folded her hands in front of her, head titled innocently to the side as she regarded her colleagues. "After all, you are two of our best men. You could do it without breaking a sweat, right?"

Roman and Dean knew what April was like. She was the silent, observant type that never missed a lie or a wrongly uttered word and punished you severely for it. They had to play this right if they wanted to make it out unscathed.

Dean nodded reverently, as though her words were gospel. He turned to Roman. "Well, Mr. Reigns?" he asked casually.

"It was a tempting offer," Roman remarked, raising a critical eyebrow at April, "but not good enough. Because when you think about it, that's a measly sum to take out two master assassins; disrespectful, even. I don't get out of bed for less than half a million bucks per target. So after careful consideration, I chose to reject the mission. A waste of my time, really." Throwing on his sunglasses, the Samoan haughtily tilted his chin. "Hope that clears it up for you. Or do we need to put it down in writing?"

Dean brushed his thumb over his nose and jerked his head towards Roman. "What he said," he finally answered, putting on his sunglasses as well. "Sorry, sweet cheeks."

And giving her a smack on her butt, Dean strolled past a shocked April out of Headquarters, Roman trailing behind him with a shake of his head.

* * *

"We're here," Seth breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of the familiar door.

Lily turned to him, biting her lip. "You think she'll like me?" she blurted out, her accent more pronounced by her nervousness.

Laughing, Seth leaned down for a quick kiss. "Of course. You'll be fast friends in no time."

He knocked on the door a couple of times, but there was no answer. Placing his hand on the door knob, he was surprised to see the door swing open unattended. Something was off. Stephanie never left her door open. Motioning for Lily to be quiet, Seth withdrew his gun and crept into the house, looking around for anything else out of the ordinary. Nothing so far. But where was Stephanie?

He heard Lily's surprised shriek from behind him, followed by a loud thud, and he spun around, gun pointed, only to see Lily lying face down on the ground and Stephanie on top of her. Her knee was buried between the younger woman's back and shoulder blades, wrenching her arm backwards in a painful-looking angle. But the thing that stunned Seth more than anything was the gun Stephanie was pointing at him. "Were you followed?" the older woman demanded, her blue eyes flashing with what looked eerily like mistrust.

Seth couldn't speak, rendered momentarily speechless by the scene before him. "Stephanie, what are you-"

"_Were you followed_?" she repeated, her aim unwavering. At that moment, Lily hissed in pain, unable to move. Stephanie didn't release the pressure on her, instead continuing to yank back on the arm as she awaited Seth's answer.

"No. No we weren't. I double-checked." Seth regarded his former mentor with concern and even an inkling of fear. He'd never seen her like that, not even when she was on active duty. Lowering his gun, he put his hands up in surrender. "I know I shouldn't be here, like you always tell me. But we didn't have anywhere else to go. We need your help. Please."

Stephanie eyed him for a long, tense beat. Seemingly satisfied with his answer, she relented and finally released Lily, standing upright and helping Lily to her feet. "Sorry about that," Stephanie apologized, dusting off the blonde woman.

"It's okay," a slightly dazed Lily replied, casting a distressed glance at Seth as she shook her arm to get the blood flowing again.

"Are you alright, Stephanie?" the two tone-haired man asked, "Did someone try to come here?"

"No. But considering the situation with you two, I had to be vigilant. You can never be too careful, you know." Stephanie offered Lily a small, apologetic smile. "I'm sorry I frightened you. You must be Lily. I've heard a lot about you."

"Likewise," Lily said graciously. "Seth has nothing but nice things to say about you."

"Well, he'd better if he wants to stay here," Stephanie retorted.

"Thank you so much. We really appreciate it," said Lily, as Seth wrapped an arm around her waist. "It's only temporary. We'll be gone before you know it," he added with a smile.

"Very well. So while you're here, be of use to me, Seth, and put the kettle on. I'll make lunch. You must be starving."

"Yeah, being on the run gets the appetite going," Seth quipped, walking towards the kitchen. Both women stared after him, shaking their heads at his pitiful joke. Stephanie extended her hand to Lily. "Come. Let's take a look at that arm."

* * *

Hunter sat in the darkened room, his elbows propped up on the desk, fingers interlocked. "I'm sure you understand what you need to do," he said, talking into the darkness. "Of all the employees at this company, you're the only one I've ever truly trusted to do what's necessary to preserve the Code. This will be no different." He slid two photographs, one of Seth, the other of Lily, across the desk. "Find them and kill them. How you do it is at your discretion. Just make sure you get the job done."

One would have been forgiven to think the Director was alone in the room, talking to himself. It was difficult to make out the figure of the tall man sitting in the opposite corner, his all-black attire reducing him to a shadow amongst shadows. He eventually emerged, removing his hands from his pockets to take the photographs from his boss's hand. His face was expressionless as he regarded the images. He pulled out a lighter and flicked it open, touching the flame to the edges of the pictures. Then slowly, his lips twisted into a cruel, evil smirk, his handsome features and blue eyes alight with the aura of a viper about to be unleashed on an unsuspecting prey.

"Hunter," came the answer, "it will be my genuine pleasure."

The smile Hunter returned was just as malicious. "We're counting on you, Mr. Orton."

* * *

_**Slowly creeping towards the home stretch. The next chapters are going to be fun. Kindly review!**_


	24. A Woman's Instinct

_**Thank you to **__TajiaK__** and **__nikki1335__** for reviewing!**_

* * *

Seth sat quietly outside the room he shared with Lily, overlooking over the balcony at the shrubbery below. It was an inconspicuous, harmless-looking garden, but Seth knew Stephanie had it booby-trapped. He stared out into the distance, his rampant thoughts having kept him awake for hours.

Twenty-four hours had passed since Seth and Lily sought refuge in Stephanie's home. He was still trying to process the fact that he was now a fugitive. He had no job, no home, and it turned out The Authority had frozen all his bank accounts. The hunter had become the hunted. When did things become such a mess? More importantly, why did The Authority want him dead? Because he met Lily? Decided to pursue a relationship with her? He hadn't known who she really was until a week and a half ago. If Ziggler was indeed correct and The Authority and F.L.O.R.A. had known their true identities all this time, then why had they not said anything to him? Why hadn't they warned him?

Simple. The Authority had never trusted him.

That was the only explanation he had. He'd played it over and over in his head and that was the conclusion he kept coming to. But if they thought coming after him would change his mind about being with Lily, that he would not retaliate in some way or form...then they were gravely mistaken. He'd given The Authority his life, and they betrayed him simply because he had fallen in love. Well, he wasn't going down, not without a fight. Not without taking the lot of them with him.

He heard a sound behind him and spun around, his body tensing. Lily was leaning against the wall, dressed in a tank top and shorts and watching him with crossed arms and a smirk. He visibly relaxed, returning her smile. "Lily."

"Seth." She strolled over to where he sat and stood between his legs, threading her fingers through his hair, which he had washed out to its natural dark color. He pulled her close, pressing a kiss to her neck as he wrapped his arms around her slender waist. She was all he had left now, the only thing in his life that meant anything to him. Her familiar warmth enveloped him, calmed him. They both stared out into the distance, arms wrapped a little tighter around each other, savoring this private moment. The quiet after the storm. For now.

"You've been up for a while. What are you thinking about?" Lily asked him.

"A few things," he admitted. "You were pretty good, back at the house," he added quietly, stroking her back, "And on the way to the train station as well."

"Were you expecting anything less?" she inquired, amused.

"No. The way we worked together. It was really good, you know." Seth went quiet again. "So, just out of curiosity...how many have you taken out?"

Lily's grey eyes narrowed at the strange question. "Really?"

"I'm just curious," he defended. "Just give me a number, then I won't ask anything else, I promise."

Lily looked away.

"Okay, I'll go first," Seth offered. The blonde woman pursed her lips, knowing this was the only way they would move on. "Alright, you first. How many?"

He shrugged, looking at his hands. "I don't really keep count, to be honest. But round figure, probably about a hundred, hundred and one total. You?"

"Including the man that murdered my parents?" said Lily, "Two hundred and twenty."

Seth went pale. "What?"

"You asked, I told," she shrugged.

"How the hell did you get to that figure?" he cried.

"Some were two, three at a time." She leveled her boyfriend with an amused glare. "Does it bother you?"

Seth swallowed. "No."

Lily eyed him for a moment before dissolving into giggles. "Liar." she whispered, leaning into him. "I want to get in contact with Jasmine. Give her a call." When his brows furrowed questioningly, she added, "My colleague from F.L.O.R.A."

"F.L.O.R.A.?" Seth's eyes widened with indignation. "You're joking."

"I'm not. I trust her, Seth."

"I trust Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns too but you don't see me making contact with them. And how do you know you won't lead them all right here with the phone call? What about Stephanie?"

"Which is why I'm not making the call here," Lily explained, genuinely offended that he thought she would make such a rookie mistake. "I'm heading into town early tomorrow morning to make the call in a telephone box. Once I'm done, I'll come back here." Lily rolled her eyes at the disapproving look on Seth's features. "Look, I trust Jasmine. I know her, and she knows me better than anyone else...including you. She has nothing to do with what's going on. Maybe she could help us get out of this mess."

Seth frowned, not happy at all. "Sounds like you've got everything all planned out."

"Seth..." Lily sighed.

He berated himself silently for his petulance, and slowly lowered his head. "Sorry. I know I'm being a dick."

"Again," she reminded him.

"Again," he agreed. "I just don't want anything to happen to you." His voice was quiet, worried, and Lily was touched. She cupped his bearded face in her hands. "I'll be fine. I'm a big girl and I can handle myself. You of all people should know that." Smiling, she circled her arms around his neck. "Still...I love that you worry about me."

Seth pressed his forehead to hers. "Of course I do. You're my girl and I love you."

"I love you too," Lily whispered back, right before his lips met hers.

* * *

In the afternoon, Lily found Stephanie bustling about in the kitchen. "Do you need some help?" she offered.

Stephanie looked up and smiled. "Yes, please. Help me cut those up." She pointed at some carrots and peppers, a chopping board and a kitchen knife. "I'm making stir-fry. Chicken and vegetable."

"Good idea with the vegetable. Seth's a vegetarian," Lily pointed out, and blushed at the smirk Stephanie threw her way. "What?"

"Nothing. It's just nice to see him in love," Stephanie said.

A smile lit up the blonde woman's face. "I feel the same way about him."

"I know. I see the way you look at him." There was something regretful about Stephanie's tone that triggered the curiosity that had lingered within Lily since last night.

"You're not really retired, are you?" she said, her eyes on Stephanie's back, and she watched as the older woman froze, her kitchen knife suspended in mid-air. When she didn't respond, Lily seized the opening and barreled on. "When Seth and I showed up...you were clearly anticipating someone when you tackled me. You thought we'd been followed. You've never accosted Seth like that before. Plus you've still got weapons hidden everywhere and a rigged garden. I know that's the standard of living for a retired assassin. We never really feel safe, even after all is said and done." Lily peered closely at Stephanie, who still hadn't moved. "But there's something more. You're hiding from someone. You've been hiding all this time."

Stephanie slowly turned, and Lily saw the truth radiating in her eyes. A sardonic chuckle left the dark-haired woman's lips. "Seth's known me for years and he never guessed. You've only been here twenty-four hours and you've already figured it out. I've underestimated you."

"Let's just say it's a woman's instinct," Lily offered.

Stephanie remained silent, but Lily could hear the faint echo of that wordless mental scream grow louder and louder, as whatever secret anguish the former assassin had carried within herself all this time was dragged back to the surface. Lily approached her, placing a hand on her arm. The gesture seemed to literally rip Stephanie away from her thoughts and bring her back to reality. Lily met her gaze solemnly. "You can tell me," she encouraged.

For a long time, Stephanie did not move. Then, looking around the kitchen, she gently led Lily to the table and sat her down. Taking a deep breath, she began to speak.

"I was an agent at The Authority for many years, and I served as Director for most of my time there. The current Director, Hunter Helmsley, was my protégé. I taught him everything he knew, and we worked well together. My story is almost identical to yours. I fell in love with a man, a target I was supposed to eliminate. His name was Mark. He was a biker. Loved his motorcycles." A small smile crossed her face at the memory. "I loved him the moment I laid eyes on him. He was just so different and so amazing. We began seeing each other, but he didn't know what I was, and he was better off not knowing if I was going to keep him safe. I lied about taking out Mark and kept him a secret, and for a long time it worked.

"Then Hunter found out. He told me to take out Mark and give up my position as Director or he would expose me. I always knew he wanted power but I never realized he would blackmail me. I agreed to kill Mark, but instead I tried to hide him away. I knew my actions had consequences, but I didn't care what they did to me. All I cared about was Mark's safety, and I put it first. He was the only thing that mattered to me."

"Did he escape?" Lily asked.

Stephanie's eyes glazed over. "No. The Authority found him, and they murdered him right in front of me. Put three bullets in his head. His head was blown apart before the third bullet hit..." The older woman trailed off, pressing a hand to her mouth to keep from sobbing. Lily watched in silence, unsure whether to comfort her or not.

Stephanie had composed herself enough to speak again, ending Lily's internal debate. "I knew…I knew Hunter was in love with me. He'd mentioned it a number of times but I never took him seriously. I didn't feel that way about him, and even if I did, it was a risk for us to ever have a relationship in the kind of environment we were in. He accused me of choosing love over my duties to The Authority, but I knew he felt betrayed that I chose another man, a civilian, over him. So he sent people after us. They abducted me and Mark and murdered him. Then they tortured me, bound and gagged me and threw me into the deepest part of the Hudson River; all on Hunter's orders. He stood there and let Mark die, he watched them toss me into that water like I was a bag of trash, and he didn't even flinch."

Lily felt a sense of guilt ripple through her. She herself had done many a dump job before, but this was the first time it was invoking an emotional response in her. "I'm sorry."

Stephanie's tears had given way to a resigned numbness. It would never be easy reliving that part of her life. "I survived. I still don't know how I did it, but I did. Washed up on dry land after managing to free myself of my bonds. I could have fled the country but I decided to remain in Stamford. Three years on and I'm here, still biding my time. I will avenge Mark, and Hunter will die by my own hand. That's a promise."

"Seth doesn't know about any of this?" said Lily.

"No." The older woman shook her head. "Over the years he's provided me with all the information I need on how to get to Hunter, though unwittingly. I didn't mean to use him, but I ended up doing so." A faint smile tickled at the corner of her lips. "I remember the first day he found me. At first I thought Hunter sent him, but I saw in his eyes that he had no idea what was going on. I just told him I retired quietly. My first thought was to kill him and tie up a loose end, but I just couldn't. Honestly," A warm smile grew, "I've always been fond of him."

"Yeah, he's charming like that," Lily agreed, a bashful grin on her face at the thought of her boyfriend.

Stephanie studied the blonde woman for several seconds. "I see myself in you, you know," she spoke softly, reaching out to take her hand. "You remind me of me during that time. I see the conflict in your eyes. You want to go on the run because it's the only way you feel you can protect Seth. That the further you run the harder it will be to find you. But in the end...they _always_ find you. We both know that. These people are equipped with enough resources to find you no matter where you go, and it won't end unless you stop them, or they stop you. So I need to know something Lily, and I need you to be honest with me. Just how much do you love Seth?"

Her answer was sincere and passionate, "More than my own life."

"Then you must _fight for him_," Stephanie told her with equal emotion. "You're both strong enough to put a stop to this. Do not let these people have a say in your lives anymore because they won't stop until both of you are dead. Fight_with _him, because he's doing this for you. Show him that you're on the same page."

"I am, and I will," Lily replied, her silver eyes ablaze with resolve.

As the two women continued to talk, Seth stood by the entrance of the kitchen, out of sight, but having heard every word. That itching sensation in his hands surfaced again, as he imagined them wrapped around Hunter Hearst Helmsley's throat.

* * *

_**If you were reading closely, this chapter is tied to the end of chapter 18. :)**_

_**Kindly review!**_


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